There has never been much talk about weight loss drugs in India. With the advent of Mounjaro and Wegovy, the blockbuster ingredients run by tirzepatide and semaglutide, more people are turning towards them not only to control diabetes but also to shed extra kilos.

They are part of the rapidly growing GLP-1 drug market, which is a multiple-arb-dollar industry that has already changed the conversation around weight and metabolic health.

But far from the glossy view of these drugs, scientists are focusing our attention to a low glamorous, and clearly worrying, question: What about side effects, especially on the eyes?

You probably haven’t heard about eye risk

A new study published in JAMA has increased eyebrows between both doctors and patients.

Given the data of about 1.5 million people, researchers found a high risk of optic nerve disorders in people with diabetes, which were on drugs such as semaglutide or tirzepetide.

Semaglutide is a drug that acts like a natural hormone in the body called GLP -1. This hormone helps control blood sugar and reduces appetite. It is used to help in type 2 diabetes, and in high doses, weight loss. Tirzepatide acts two hormones, GLP-1 and another like GIP, which simultaneously helps in releasing insulin, controlling blood sugar and managing weight.

One of the flagged conditions is rare but serious, known as non-artiter anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, which reduces the neanian.

Often described as a “eye stroke”, neither occurs when blood flow in the optic nerve is suddenly low or blocked. Scary part? People usually notice it when they have already lost vision in one eye. Currently there is no cure for this.

From rare to rare

According to chronic research, until some time ago, Nine was considered abnormal in about 1 in 10,000 patients in these drugs.

But this new study depicts a separate picture: Semaglutide or Tirzepetide, out of 1,59,000 people with type 2 diabetes, 35 developed Naion during a two-year follow-up, which is about 1 in 2,500.

Other 93 patients were detected other optic nerve disorders.

It is still a low risk, researchers stress, but it is more than already estimated.

Another vision concern: diabetes retinopathy

The same journal published another major study, a tracking 1,85,000 people, who saw the link between GLP-1 drugs and diabetes retinopathy. This condition occurs when blood vessels in the retina are damaged, sometimes vision loss.

conclusion? On GLP-1 drugs, people showed a slight risk of developing diabetes retinopathy.

But here is the twist: these drugs had a truly less severe vision complications and required less aggressive treatment than patients on other diabetic drugs.

Should you be worried?

If you are taking these drugs or considering, then there is an important tech away: the overall risk of eye complications is still low, but it is not zero.

Because the eye conditions like Naion cannot be reversed, prevention and quick detection matters a lot.

Researchers recommend that all diabetic patients should be regularly examined on weight loss drugs, even without pre -existing eye problems. This means that the eye examination should be part of the standard care plan, not only something you do if your vision starts changing.

Nevertheless, more research is required

Scientists are still finding out how GLP-1 drugs can give rise to eye issues. Is this a change in blood flow? An effect on small vessels in the retinal and optic nerve? Or something completely?

They are calling for long -term studies to track patients for many years and to understand these connections better.

Meanwhile, the doctors are in a balance act -weighing high cost of GLP -1 drugs against their benefits in controlling sugars and reducing diabetes complications, while also holding an eye (literally) at potential risks.

If you are on these medicines, talk to your doctor about schedule. After all, protecting your vision is as important as to improve your blood sugar or waist.