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Foods to Avoid on GLP-1s, According to Registered Dietitians | Woman's World
Even though weight loss medications like Ozempic and Wegovy may seem like miracle drugs, GLP-1 patients are also expected to make significant lifestyle changes. GLP-1s help facilitate weight loss, but adding regular exercise to prevent muscle loss, and dietary changes to to make sure you’re still getting good nutrition while eating less, are crucial for long-term effectiveness. And while GLP-1 patients should be consciously consuming more “healthy” foods, there are also certain foods to avoid on GLP-1s. We spoke to registered dietitians who weighed in on what foods patients should avoid or eliminate entirely from their diets for best possible results.
Avoiding these foods when you’re taking GLP-1s may help your weight loss results
With weight loss, there isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” solution. However, dietitians such as Angel Luk, RD and co-founder of FoodMysteries emphasize the importance of avoiding large amounts of sugar and processed foods while taking GLP-1s, to get the most out of the medication (which we make note of in our printable PDF!): “Ultra processed foods that are high in added sugars and unhealthy fats pack a heavy calorie punch while being very low in nutrient density,” she explains. “To optimize results on GLP-1s, I highly recommend that people continue to eat three small meals a day, with one to to snacks as needed, while ensuring that each small meal and snack includes protein, vegetable and/or fruit, and some complex carbohydrates.”
[Ensure] that each small meal and snack includes protein, vegetable and/or fruit, and some complex carbohydrates.
Eating at home can help avoid sneaky extra calories
Caloric deficits are also necessary to ensure the medication works — which is why Luk also adds that eating out should be a treat. Even though cooking a homemade meal after a long day at work can sometimes seem quite taxing, it helps those looking to lose weight — especially on GLP-1s — know exactly what’s going into their food, and how much they are eating. “Even ‘healthier’ options at a restaurant often contain significantly more calories than a homemade ‘copycat’ version of the same meal,” Luk says.
GLP-1 patients should also avoid foods that trigger negative side effects
GLP-1s can sometimes come with unpleasant side effects. Michelle Routhenstein, MS RD CDCES CDN says GLP-1 patients should avoid anything that will further upset their stomachs: “Given that GLP-1 medications can cause nausea and constipation, it’s best to avoid foods that may worsen these symptoms,” Routhenstein says. “This includes refined sugars, fatty foods, processed foods, and large portions.”
This includes refined sugars, fatty foods, processed foods, and large portions.
There are some foods you should be sure to eat when taking GLP-1s
Because GLP-1s tend to decrease appetite, patients should also make sure they are taking in certain nutrients (as noted in our PDF!). Routhenstein says protein and fiber are at the top of her list: “It’s important to include adequate protein intake to prevent muscle loss, as well as fiber to promote regularity and ensure you receive essential vitamins and minerals for overall health,” she explains.
Opting for more cold protein can be an easier way to get enough nutrition with less cooking—and help with side effects
While some may associate “protein” with a grilled steak or a bowl of lentil soup, Luk suggests going cold. Indigestion, headaches, and diarrhea — which are associated with GLP-1s — can make it hard to eat. But opting for cold food may be easier to digest. “Cold protein foods such as milk or calcium fortified plant milk, as well as yogurt, nuts, and seeds, are optimal choices,” Luk explains. “They are dense in protein and unlikely to worsen nausea, which is often triggered by hot, aromatic foods.”
Supplements may depend on you
Routhenstein adds that supplement recommendations will vary from person to person. Getting regular bloodwork on GLP-1s is necessary, however, to examine and identify an individual’s possible deficiencies. “If GLP-1 medications reduce appetite to the point of only consuming one meal per day, supplements may be necessary to ensure adequate nutrient intake. The choice of supplements should be guided by a Registered Dietitian,” Routhenstein says. “They are evaluating your lab results, medical history, medications, age, and gender, with your food intake to ensure benefit versus potential harm.”
It can be hard to get enough fiber while eating less
Although supplements may vary person to person, Luk recommends GLP-1 patients supplement their diets with fiber, in gradual amounts: “In general, most adults do not meet the recommended daily fiber intake goal of 25 to 38 grams per day, let alone while their appetite and intake is reduced while on GLP-1s,” Luk says. “If someone is really struggling to meet their dietary fiber goal via food sources alone, it’s worthwhile to discuss taking a fiber supplement with a health care provider.”
Maintaining a healthy diet on GLP-1s is crucial
If you need a printable reminder of what to eat and not to eat on GLP-1s, make sure to download our PDF! Below is a list of foods to avoid and eat more of while taking weight loss medications.
Foods to Avoid on GLP-1s
- Processed foods
- Food from restaurants
- Refined sugars
- Fatty foods
- Processed foods
- Large portions
Foods to Incorporate into a GLP-1 Diet
- Protein (eat cold for digestion)
- Supplements, based on guidance from a dietitian
- Fiber
This content is not a substitute for professional medical advice or diagnosis. Always consult your physician before pursuing any treatment plan.
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A distraught mother who thought she was having a heart attack was instead hospitalized with broken heart syndrome — otherwise known as takotsubo syndrome (TTS) — less than a year after her veteran son tragically took his own life.
Dawn Turner, 57, of the U.K., lost her son in August of last year.
Just last month, the mom of three awoke with “unbearable” chest pains, she said — and called an ambulance, worried she was going into cardiac arrest. But when she arrived at the hospital, doctors told her she was suffering from the effects of grief caused by a broken heart, as news agency SWNS reported.
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TTS is a temporary, reversible heart condition often triggered by extreme emotional or physical stress, such as grief, fear or severe illness, according to experts.
Symptoms usually mimic a heart attack, with sudden and severe chest pain and shortness of breath the most common — and it primarily affects women over the age of 50.
A mom whose soldier son took his own life feared she was suffering cardiac arrest — only to be told by hospital doctors that she was feeling the effects of grief caused by a broken heart. Dawn Turner, mother of deceased soldier Rob Homans, is pictured above, April 2026. (SWNS)
Turner, of Eckington in Worcester, said, “I was [sitting] downstairs earlier that night and thought I had a bit of indigestion. I went to bed and just couldn’t get comfortable — I was breaking out in a sweat and had heart palpitations.
“Then, around midnight, I had pain down my arm and in my jaw. I was still putting it down to indigestion… My partner Paul asked me if I was all right, and I said, ‘I think I’m having a heart attack.’”
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She said she couldn’t catch her breath — “and my heart felt as though it was missing a beat and then [started] thudding again. For those moments, I truly believed I was having a heart attack.”
“Your heart is all over the place — there’s an extra beat,” Turner was told.
She said her partner called emergency services, and an ambulance arrived within five minutes.
“They came in and linked me up to an ECG. They said, ‘Your heart is all over the place — there’s an extra beat, and it’s all over the place,’” she said, as SWNS reported.
Turner was rushed to the hospital by ambulance.
Turner is shown with her son in full dress uniform. He worked as an artilleryman and spent 10 years in the U.K.’s Royal Horse Artillery after joining in 2006. He was battling mental health challenges after his military service, and ultimately took his own life. (SWNS)
In emergency care, Turner was also given blood tests.
She added, “They came back and said I didn’t have the enzymes produced from a heart attack in my blood. But they said there [was] something going on.”
After undergoing more tests and seeing a cardiologist, Turner was told she had takotsubo syndrome.
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“I told [the doctor] that my heart feels broken. I told her about [my son] Rob, and she said it’s exactly that. She said it’s a real thing, and that I’d been under so much stress. The body can only take so much, and the grief and the stress can be quite physical.”
Turner’s son committed suicide in August 2025 after struggling to get help with his mental health.
He spent 10 years in the Royal Horse Artillery after joining in 2006, when he worked as an artilleryman.
Turner’s son did two tours of duty in Afghanistan, she said. After he returned to civilian life, he began suffering from a number of health conditions. She’s shown above with a flower-draped memorial to her son. (SWNS)
He did two tours of duty in Afghanistan, she said, and returned to civilian life in 2016 before suffering several worsening health conditions.
Turner, who is also the CEO of a veterans charity called Stepway, “When he left the army, he got married, and they settled down in London. He walked straight into a job as a delivery driver. But then his health took a downward spiral, and he started having digestive troubles.”
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He was eventually told he had PTSD — but those symptoms may be similar to those of mild traumatic brain injury, Turner said.
“He was deaf in one ear from using the guns,” she said. “He realized he was putting so much pressure on his marriage, so he moved back up with me. He started to build himself up — then COVID hit.”
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Turner said there were unfortunate delays as her son tried to get access to various services and facilities.
“When people lose loved ones, you’re obviously distraught, but you eventually find closure,” she said, per SWNS. “I found peace when I lost my sister in 2015. But with Rob, I can’t find closure because there’s no justice there.”
“I had never really understood that a person could become so overwhelmed by stress and grief that it physically affects the heart,” said the grieving mom. “Broken heart syndrome can look and feel like a heart attack.” (iStock)
Turner is now on the mend and hopes to be fully recovered in a couple of weeks, SWNS reported.
“Until that moment, I had never really understood that a person could become so overwhelmed by stress and grief that it physically affects the heart,” she shared. “Broken heart syndrome can look and feel like a heart attack. It was a warning sign for me, and for anyone. It can change the shape of one of your heart chambers … it can cause some serious damage.”
She added, “The cardiologist told me that thankfully, my heart itself is healthy and there was no damage, but that it will take around two weeks to a month for my heart to reboot itself.”
“Maybe the extra [heart]beat is for Rob. You are carrying on living for him,” her partner told her.
Turner was told she needed to rest, seek counseling and make lifestyle changes to reduce stress.
“Things have settled down, and I’m taking things easy — I’m pacing myself now, and I feel a lot better. Paul said, ‘Maybe the extra beat is for Rob. You are carrying on living for him.’”
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Turner said, “That broke me and healed me a little bit all at once.”
Fox News Digital previously reported that broken heart syndrome, which causes the heart to temporarily weaken, has been linked to the brain’s reaction to stress, as studies have found.
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In an article published in the European Heart Journal in March 2019, Swiss researchers said they found that the syndrome is linked to the way the brain communicates with the heart.
Broken heart syndrome, which causes the heart to temporarily weaken, has been linked to the brain’s reaction to stress, studies have found. (iStock)
Caused by intense emotional events, TTS is a rare, temporary condition that weakens the left ventricle and disrupts its normal pumping function.
The syndrome causes the heart’s main pumping chamber to change shape and get larger. The heart muscle becomes weaker, and its pumping action loses strength.
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Symptoms include sudden, intense chest pain, pressure or heaviness in the chest, along with shortness of breath.
It is treated with beta blockers and blood-thinning medicine to reduce risks of clots and other flareups.
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Eating too much salt has long been linked to high blood pressure, but new research suggests it could trick the immune system into prematurely aging the blood vessels.
A preclinical study recently published in the Journal of the American Heart Association has identified a biological chain reaction that links a salty diet to cardiovascular decay.
Scientists at the University of South Alabama observed that mice on a high-salt diet experienced rapid deterioration in their blood vessel function.
HIGH SALT INTAKE LINKED TO FASTER MEMORY DECLINE IN ONE GROUP, STUDY FINDS
After just four weeks of high sodium intake, the small arteries responsible for regulating blood flow lost their ability to relax, according to a press release.
The team found that the cells lining these vessels had entered a state of cellular senescence, a form of premature cellular aging in which cells stop dividing and release a mix of inflammatory signals that can damage surrounding tissue.
Excess salt has long been linked to high blood pressure, but a new study goes deeper into its effects on the cardiovascular system. (iStock)
The researchers tried to replicate this damage by exposing blood vessel cells directly to salt in a laboratory dish, but the cells showed no harmful effects.
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This suggests that salt isn’t directly causing damage to the vascular lining but that the real culprit may be the body’s own defense mechanism, the researchers noted.
Excess salt may trigger the immune system to release a molecule called interleukin-16 (IL-16), which acts as a messenger that instructs blood vessel cells to grow old before their time, according to the study.
Excess salt may trigger the immune system to release a molecule called interleukin-16, which acts as a messenger that instructs blood vessel cells to grow old before their time, according to the study. (iStock)
Once these cells age, they fail to produce nitric oxide, the essential gas that tells arteries to dilate and stay flexible.
To test whether this process could be reversed, the team turned to a class of experimental drugs known as senolytics.
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Using a cancer medication called navitoclax, which selectively clears out aged and dysfunctional cells, the researchers were able to restore nearly normal blood vessel function in the salt-fed mice, the release stated.
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By removing the decaying cells created by the high-salt diet, the drug allowed the remaining healthy tissue to maintain its elasticity and respond correctly to blood flow demands.
Excess salt may trigger the immune system into stopping the cells from dividing, the study suggests. (iStock)
The study did have some limitations. The transition from mouse models to human treatment remains a significant hurdle, the team cautioned.
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Senolytic drugs like navitoclax are still being studied for safety, and the team emphasized that previous trials have shown mixed results regarding their impact on artery plaque.
Additionally, the researchers have not yet confirmed whether the same IL-16 pathway is the primary driver of vascular aging in humans.
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