Lydia* initially began contemplating weight-loss medications during her pregnancy. “Everyone was discussing them, and the ads were ubiquitous,” she recalls while her infant son sleeps upstairs. “I remember thinking: ‘That’s how I’ll shed pounds for my wedding next year.’”
As Lydia recounts her pre-pregnancy struggles with yo-yo dieting and body image issues, I mention that many of us can empathize. However, her pregnancy bestowed a newfound sense of body acceptance and satisfaction that the 33-year-old from Wales had never experienced before.
But as her due date neared, a familiar anxiety resurfaced. Within her antenatal class WhatsApp group – once a platform for sharing snapshots of their growing bellies and labor initiation tips – babies began to arrive, and discussions shifted towards feeding. Suddenly, dieting and weight loss came up. Among the six mothers, three opted not to breastfeed or stopped early to engage in crash diets or weight-loss injections – both of which are discouraged during breastfeeding due to their effect on both the quality and quantity of breast milk. Lydia remained committed to breastfeeding, so she tried her best not to be affected by it – and felt relieved that despite her son’s severe health issues at birth, which led to a stay in the neonatal intensive care unit, they succeeded in breastfeeding.
Trauma often sharpens one’s focus, and in the early days of her son’s life, Lydia’s concerns about her weight faded away as she dedicated herself to his care. “He nearly died. I just didn’t care about anything else other than him,” she states. After some months, though, she began to realize that instead of losing weight, she was gradually gaining it, contrary to what everyone, including her mother, had assured her would happen while breastfeeding.
Now, at seven months postpartum, weight-loss injections are everywhere she turns: her Instagram feed is filled with followers discussing them, and many ads are from private providers. The world seems intent on her no longer being overweight. And like countless women before her, she is heeding this message. “As much as I can value my body for bringing this wonderful being into the world, and I can rationalize it fully,” she shares, “the prospect of not being ‘thin’ for my wedding makes me feel despair.”
I am also a parent of young children and, like many others, have faced weight challenges throughout my life. Growing up in the late 90s, I experienced the damaging scrutiny of women’s bodies. I vividly recall presenter Chris Evans compelling Victoria Beckham to weigh herself live on TV just six months after she gave birth to her first son, Brooklyn, to demonstrate that she had shed her pregnancy weight. Despite the body positivity movement promoting diversity and acceptance, the astonishing growth of the GLP-1 agonist market, with an estimated 1.5 million users in the UK, appears to be reversing progress.
I welcomed my first child in 2022 and my second in 2024 – and the urge to “bounce back” post-second birth was intense; the environment felt vastly different. Weight loss was no longer merely aspirational; it became attainable; just one relatively simple, albeit costly, injection away. A 2019 study by the Mental Health Foundation suggested that as many as four in ten women experience postnatal dissatisfaction with their bodies – it’s unsurprising that private weight-loss companies are focusing on recent mothers. Consider Serena Williams’s recent promotion of the injections as part of an advertising campaign for Ro, a private provider: “After kids, it’s the medication my body required,” she remarks.
I hopped on the bandwagon six months postpartum. After looking into the medications and reviewing the government and NHS guidelines regarding GLP-1 agonists, I discovered that these medications should not be used during pregnancy, while attempting to conceive, or while nursing. Close behind the multiple bouts of mastitis I experienced in the preceding months, my desire to quickly lose weight significantly influenced my choice to stop breastfeeding at six months.
Dr. Jan Toledano, a prominent women’s hormone expert and founder of the London Hormone Clinic, mentions that she frequently witnesses this in her practice. “This is such a time of hormonal upheaval. Your body transitions, you’re in turmoil … you bear the responsibility of caring for these new infants and toddlers. You grapple with various identity and body issues, and the pressure to revert to your previous self is overwhelming.” She expresses concern, albeit not surprise, that someone would eagerly seek weight loss amid this context to the extent of discontinuing breastfeeding.
Melanie* is a 31-year-old mother of two small children residing in south Wales. Her youngest daughter, who is 18 months, breastfeeds a few times daily. Frustrated with her postnatal size and eager to lose weight, Melanie has been using Mounjaro (a well-known GLP-1 agonist) since January, resulting in a five-stone loss. For her, the weight reduction has been “transformative,” although she didn’t take the decision to go against NHS guidelines lightly. “I conducted extensive research, read scientific articles as much as I could understand, and discussed it with my husband,” she explains. The private supplier from whom she acquired her Mounjaro inquired if she was breastfeeding. She checked a box indicating no, and her provided information was never verified.
She notes feeling more at ease disregarding strict guidelines since she also takes another medication, deemed safe for nursing, that is administered similarly. She had read other women’s experiences on Reddit. “Clearly, large-scale studies on the safety of these drugs during breastfeeding haven’t been conducted because it’s unethical,” she clarifies, “but we resolved to proceed.”
The Breastfeeding Network’s Drugs in Breastmilk service provides insights into the safety of medications, treatments, and procedures for nursing mothers. Amanda Da Costa, a clinical supervisor at the service, highlights that inquiries from breastfeeding mothers about weight loss have surged by 145% from summer 2024 to summer 2025. “Questions about injections constitute the majority of those weight-loss-related inquiries,” she adds. “GLP-1 medications like Mounjaro, Ozempic, or Wegovy are not recommended during breastfeeding,” she stresses. “Additional research and data are necessary to determine whether these drugs transfer into breast milk or affect nursing infants.”
Toledano is even more explicit regarding her concerns about using these medications while breastfeeding. “There is minimal human data on whether they are absorbed in breast milk and transmitted to an infant, but some animal studies exist,” she remarks. “While they are not extensive, some suggest there could be potential effects on a baby’s growth – making it critically serious and vital that GLP-1s be avoided during breastfeeding.” She also notes that the impact on an infant might not be immediately evident, yet long-term effects could exist. “Other concerns for the baby might include the development of normal appetite regulation and gut hormone pathways.”
The ease with which new parents like Melanie can obtain these medications online raises alarms. Da Costa states that the network expects all prescribers to inquire if patients are breastfeeding before issuing prescriptions, but she is quick to note that adherence to this guideline isn’t always followed, and individuals might choose not to or forget to disclose this information. Toledano identifies this lack of oversight as the most alarming aspect of the surge in GLP-1 usage via private providers. “They often promote nutritional support, yet it’s lacking,” she states, “and due to the online nature, how can anyone assess how well the patient is doing?”
Toledano emphasizes other possible health risks of using weight-loss drugs during the postnatal stage – defined as at least the first year after a baby’s birth. “Rapid weight loss can influence many aspects: milk production may stop, yes, but energy levels might also drop, which, in my view, could predispose to postnatal depression.” She also remarks that quick body mass loss can halt menstruation, obscuring the fertility return that menstruation often signifies. Thus, she cautions anyone taking them to be very cautious about contraception if they wish to avoid pregnancy.
Of course, some mothers do require medical assistance in the postnatal phase, particularly if they have developed gestational diabetes or are at risk for type 2 diabetes or other metabolic illnesses. In such instances, Toledano recommends collaborating with a specialist physician who can supervise their treatment while on the drugs, but she expresses concern that the aggressive marketing of these medications directly to consumers is disrupting this process. “If a woman is turning to GLP-1 agonists because they are constantly advertised and everyone is using them, she may not consult a doctor who comprehensively understands metabolic changes following pregnancy,” which, according to her, heightens the risk of experiencing unwelcome side effects or health complications.
I regret my choice to cease breastfeeding to use GLP-1 agonists – especially since the side effects were unbearable for me, and I was unable to continue with them for more than a couple of weeks. Losing your milk supply isn’t a reversible action. Hindsight provides clarity, of course, but reflecting back now, I recognize how vulnerable and insecure I felt during those early postnatal weeks, thus making me susceptible to the allure of effortless weight loss. I might as well have worn a target on my back. And what I currently feel is concern about the insufficient continuous care and support for postnatal women who are being, whether justly or unjustly, urged towards these drugs during a critical time. I wish someone had shielded me from them.
Since our discussion, Melanie has informed me that she has discontinued the use of Mounjaro. She expresses concern over how easily postnatal women like herself can be influenced by the marketing of the injections or choose to omit information or lie to obtain them – as she did. “You are quite vulnerable; your hormones are chaotic, sleep-deprived and all of that. There should be alerts and more stringent advertising to prevent them from targeting the wrong individuals,” she asserts.
For the time being, Lydia has opted not to pursue the medications. “Ultimately, my child takes precedence over this relentless desire to be thin,” she states, though she is clear that if it is deemed safe for her to do so, and she is confident her son won’t be affected, she is likely to consider them as soon as he turns one. She also resents that, as is often the plight of women, she feels caught between two goals that society heavily pressures mothers to fulfill: bouncing back and breastfeeding. “I just loathe that I can’t achieve both,” she laments. I tell her that I share her sentiments.
* Names have been changed
