Weight-loss injections have rapidly become one of the most talked-about trends in the UK. While much of the discussion has focused on their effectiveness in helping people lose weight, dermatologists are increasingly observing that significant and rapid weight changes can also affect the skin. As the body adjusts to these changes, some people may notice dryness, sensitivity or irritation appearing in areas where the skin is particularly delicate.
With approximately 3% of the UK population, which is 1.6 million people, currently taking weight loss jabs like Ozempic, Wegovy or Mounjaro, these medications are fast becoming more than just a fad or trend with many people settling into the acceptance of taking weight loss jabs for the long-term so these figures are only set to rise over the coming years.
While these drugs can work wonders for weight loss, they are not without significant side effects, one of which is changes in skin. Ozempic Face has become a common social media term, which refers to the loss of volume in the face caused by sudden and rapid weight loss.
What is less commonly discussed, although is now emerging as another skin issue related to weight loss jabs, is atopic or eczema-like symptoms which can also be a common side effect of rapid weight loss from the use of weight loss jabs.
“Significant weight loss of two stone or more over a short period of time such as 4-6 months depletes the skin of essential nutrients and can disrupt the skin barrier function,” says dermatologist Dr Eva Melegh. “Dehydration along with nutrient deficiencies (namely vitamins E and C as well as zinc and Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids) as well as hormonal shifts due to these deficiencies can cause the skin to become significantly thinner, drier and more reactive from sudden depletion of skin barrier function.
In addition, when fat cells shrink, the skin’s nerve endings get irritated. This happens because fat cells release their contents, causing inflammation so skin can also become irritated inflamed and itchy.
These two factors mean that rapid weight loss can often trigger eczema-like symptoms.”
Dr Melegh outlines four common areas on the face affected by sudden and rapid weight loss and how to counteract these issues to prevent skin from developing into more chronic and long-term eczema or dermatitis.
Red & Dry Eyelids
The skin on the eyelids is thinner than anywhere else on the body, so it doesn’t have the same protective fat layer beneath it. This makes it more vulnerable to even minor changes in skin barrier function and any reduction in collagen production so its often the first place where dryness and irritation appears.
Eyelid skin also has a higher concentration of blood vessels, which makes it more sensitive to irritants such as chemicals in skincare or cosmetics.
Rapid weight loss from weight loss jabs can lead to sudden deficiencies in essential nutrients like Vitamin A, Vitamin E, and Omega-3 fatty acids which is likely to quickly trigger dry, red and irritated eyelids.
How to treat Ozempic Eyelids
Avoid make up removers. Most make up removers contain solvents and alcohol. Solvents are chemicals that are designed to dissolve grease and dirt and are needed to break down eye cosmetics like mascara. Alcohol helps remove grease and residue from cosmetics.
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is an effective solvent used in the majority of make-up removers, making them a prime culprit for irritation of dry and vulnerable skin on the eye lids.
Instead switch to a cream cleanser without any chemicals or perfumes in it that is designed to remove make up and dirt and contains moisturising ingredients such as Kalme Cream Cleanser which is designed for ultra-sensitive skin.
Steroids are often the first port of call for eczema prone skin, but its not recommend to use steroids around the eye area due to the thinness of skin, so you need to find an alternative that helps calm down itching and irritation so that the skin barrier can start to repair.
Hydrosil Dry Eye Gel is a light natural eye gel specifically for calming and relieving dry, itchy and irritated skin around the eye. It contains an extract of Cardiospermum Halicacabum, which is a natural ‘plant steroid’ derived from a Sri Lanken vine. The eye gel delivers anti-inflammatory and anti-itching benefits without damaging or irritating the delicate skin around the eye and can be used as often as required and can be worn under make up as a protective barrier.
Increased Skin Sensitivity
Many people on weight loss jabs begin to quickly experience increased skin sensitivity, even if their skin was previously resilient. Rapid weight loss and sudden changes in nutritional intake, especially reduced fatty acids and protein, can affect the mechanism in which collagen is produced.
When subcutaneous fat pads disappear rapidly, nerve endings become more exposed which can lead to a sudden increase in skin sensitivity. This combined with nutritional deficiencies which can also affect healthy nerve cell support and skin barrier weakening can trigger very sensitive and dry skin, which is more prone to skin reactions to external irritants such as pollution, chemicals in skincare products, suncreams and make up, UV rays, chlorine from pools and even in normal tap water.
How to treat Ozempic Sensitivity
Sensitive skin can become very vulnerable to exfoliants, in particular retinols, so it’s best to avoid retinol use while the body is going through rapid weight loss. Even normal manual exfoliation should also be reduced to only a few times a week as skin in this state is often too fragile to cope with daily exfoliation.
Stick to manual and gentle exfoliants. Clarol Silver & Birch Exfoliating Wash is a gentle exfoliant with natural ingredients that also contains a patented silver ingredient that promotes the growth of good skin bacteria to help repair skin barrier function while repelling the growth of bad skin bacteria which can further exacerbate sensitivity and inflammation leading to dryness and tightness.
Skin prebiotics fundamentally address dryness, sensitivity and underlying inflammation caused by a weakened skin barrier function as they feed good skin bacteria which is the building block of the skin barrier.
Prebiotic serums are better than creams as they can pack more concentrated amounts of ingredient into them and are a better carrier for prebiotics. Kalme TeQ Serum contains a patented skin prebiotic from Mexican agave extract and is both super hydrating and skin barrier function repairing for skin prone to redness, dryness and sensitivity.
Reducing inflammation in the body can significantly help reduce inflammatory reactions in skin so taking a super antioxidant over the winter months can help calm down inflammatory skin responses. Reservatrol is one of the strongest antioxidants available and is a natural compound found in plants like red grapes, peanuts, and berries. It’s known for its anti-inflammatory properties and can be taken as a daily supplement.
You can also manually decrease the skin’s nerve ending response by using a de-sensitising barrier cream under all other skincare products. Kalme Undercoat is a light base cream that contains a specific patented de-sensitising ingredient that can help reduce skin sensitivity by up to 70% and should be worn under all cosmetics, suncreams as well as under other skincare products and at night.
Chapped & Blistered Lips
Rapid weight loss can cause lips to quickly loose some of their fatty tissue bulk making them more dehydrated and drier and causing them to lose volume. The loss of fat in the lips combined with increased dryness can mean that lips can quickly become chapped and split. For the 50% of people who carry the herpes simplex virus that causes cold sores, this sudden change in lip volume and dryness can trigger a cold sore outbreak, leaving them both dry and blistered.
How to treat Ozempic Lips
There isn’t much available in pharmacies to help prevent cold sores, only treatments for once the sore has broken out but preventing this from happening is preferable to waiting for a sore to arrive, which can last anywhere from 5-10 days and is often painful and further damaging to the skin barrier.
Liquorice and lemon balm are two natural plant extracts which have proven preventative actions against the herpes simplex virus.
The key cold sore fighting ingredient in liquorice is glycyrrhizic acid (GA). GA specifically targets the genes that are required to maintain the herpes simplex virus in its latent state by interfering with the production of special proteins that feed the infected cells. Published research has shown that liquorice has the ability to weaken the cold sore virus which lies dormant in the skin between outbreaks.
Melissa oil, more commonly known as lemon balm, is also well researched for its strong anti-viral action and there is a bank of evidence, both published and anecdotal, to show that topical forms of Melissa oil are effective at preventing cold sores.
Lip Q Lquorice & Melissa Lip Gel contains high concentration of both GA and melissa oil and has been proven by the Herpes Virus Association to help reduce the intensity and duration of cold sore outbreaks as well as reduce their frequency. Using the lip gel regularly in between outbreaks reduced the severity and duration of outbreaks for over 73% of subjects tested. Furthermore, 83% of subjects reported experiencing less severe outbreaks.
The lip gel can be used daily and can also be combined with a daily liquorice lip balm which only contains GA and also has a intensely moisturising action as a preventative lip care program for vulnerable dry lips during periods of rapid weight loss.
It’s also helpful to avoid matt or long stay lipsticks as these further remove moisture from lips and avoid any cosmetic lip injections during periods of rapid weight loss so as not to give any further trauma to dry or cracked lips.
Flaky Brows
Brows, like the scalp, have their own microbiota and rapid weight loss can drastically disrupt this delicate balance of bacteria living in the brows and lead to brow barrier dysfunction that causes dry and flaking eyebrows.
Add to that localised trauma from typical brow maintenance procedures such as waxing, threading or microblading and the fact that rapid weight loss slows down would healing and brows can become even more damaged, flaky and dry.
We also tend to touch our brows a lot so the combination of weakened brow barrier function combined with rubbing external bacteria into our brows can cause brow eczema flares.
Brow eczema or dermatitis can make brows very flaky and itchy and uncomfortable.
How to treat Ozempic Brows
Topical steroid ointments are usually the first port of call for atopic skin flares but like the eyelids, it’s not recommended to use them around the eye area as the skin on the brows is thin.
Opt for a brow product that will help repair brow barrier function and intensely hydrate the brows.
Hydrosil HydroBrow is a unique clear brow serum that contains an extract from chicory root, which is a natural prebiotic that helps repair brow barrier function by replenishing beneficial brow microbiota plus an extract of passion fruit seed, with proven anti-inflammatory action to sooth itching and hydrate brows. It also contains a plant steroid that mimics the action of chemical steroids to quickly relieve itching and irritation.
It’s best to not do any microblading or brow tinting procedures during periods of rapid weight loss.
Also try to avoid allowing residue from shampoos run into the brow area when washing hair as solvents and chemicals in normal shampoos can cause irritation to vulnerable dry brows, making itching, irritation and flaking worse.
Apply a spray SPF to brows when out in sunny conditions as dry and flaky brows with compromised brow barrier function are much more vulnerable to UV damage, which can cause further dryness and inflammation.
