Some People on GLP-1s Are Losing Their Sense of Taste

Jess Loren remembers loving Cap'n Crunch cereal. Coca-Cola. Snickers bars.

Now? "They taste bland," she says. Flavors are noticeably muted since she started a GLP-1 medication in April 2023 to manage her PCOS symptoms.

The injections are working. After nearly 11 surgeries to manage her condition, she hasn't needed treatment since going on the drug. But the shift in her palate was an unexpected side effect.

"It happened pretty instantly," Loren, 40, who lives in Los Angeles, says. "It's muted. I can still taste it, but it's not the same. Like the sugar was deleted."

There's no exact count of GLP-1 patients who say their sense of taste has changed since starting the medication. But people like Loren report the drugs, which manage blood sugar and treat obesity, have muted or altered tastes. Some don't notice any change at all.

Doctors know this happens to GLP-1 patients, but the cause and scale of the changes is still being investigated.

The Research

A March 2025 study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found 85% of people on GLP-1s scored worse on a taste test compared to people not on the drugs. The test involved touching flavored plastic strips to their tongues.

All five taste areas—salty, sweet, bitter, sour, and umami—were diminished for people on the drugs.

"We were quite surprised," says Richard Doty, one of the study's authors and director of the Smell and Taste Center at University of Pennsylvania Medical Center. "It's a significant decrement in the ability to taste the basic taste qualities."

"Altered taste sensation, known medically as dysgeusia, is a well-known class effect for all marketed GLP-1s and has been listed in the respective prescribing information for these medicines," a Novo Nordisk spokesperson told USA TODAY. Novo Nordisk makes Ozempic, Wegovy, and Victoza.

"This can manifest in various ways, with an unpleasant, abnormal or altered taste sensation, and is often described as metallic."

Why This Happens

Experts still don't know exactly why GLP-1 users report taste changes, according to Steven Munger, professor at the University of Virginia.

There are some clues though. GLP-1 receptors are all over our bodies, including our taste buds. When we take GLP-1 drugs, we're increasing amounts of this natural hormone, triggering insulin to enter our bloodstream and blocking glucose from our system. This impacts the areas of our brain that process hunger and fullness.

"In your mouth, there are receptors for GLP-1 on the nerves that carry taste information back to the brain," Munger says. But we can't say yet which of the drug's functions exactly drives taste changes.

Different for Everyone

The extent of taste change varies wildly. The volume on a specific taste could go up for some and down for others or be unchanged.

Morgan Williams, 29, used to love flavorful meats. Since going on a GLP-1 in April, the Lincoln, Nebraska, mom says she can barely eat chicken if it has seasoning. She now prefers plain sweet potato or salmon.

"Everything is salty to me, even if I didn't put salt on it," she says. The change has been tough. She has to prepare a separate dinner for her son who dislikes her now-bland recipes. "Sometimes it's like 'Gosh, I really want this.'"

New tastes can crop up too. Nicole Burton, in Liberty, Kentucky, has lost about 120 pounds since she went on a GLP-1 in May 2024. The 32-year-old used to hate spicy food. Now her friends make fun of how much hot sauce she pours on her meals.

"It's a huge shift," Burton says. "It's like my taste buds flipped."

This change could be driven by dimmed taste, Munger says.

"Increasing the sensory input of spiciness or taste helps to partially offset the loss of the sensations," Munger says. "However, others can find (some) sensations to be overwhelming and out of balance, and they will actually prefer foods that are more bland. There is a lot of individuality at work here."

Food Preferences Are Changing

A September 2025 survey by International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc., found 85% of GLP-1 users have had major changes in food preferences, including developing strong aversions to fatty foods, fried items, sweets, coffee, and alcohol.

This down-regulation has been a good thing for people like Burton who finally love eating again after decades struggling with weight.

"(Taste) now is more satiating," she says. "I'm craving things that actually fuel my body."

More research needs to be done on the role of genetics, Doty says, and what happens when people go off the drugs.

So if you're on a GLP-1 and suddenly your favorite foods taste weird, you're not imagining it. Your taste buds are actually changing. Whether that's a bug or a feature depends on your perspective—and whether you used to crave Snickers bars or Brussels sprouts.

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