The growing popularity of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Zepbound is having some unfortunate consequences. Namely, that some people, including children, are overdosing on the medications.<\/p>\n
This week, Indiana news outlet WTHR reported<\/a> on the harrowing case of Jessa Milender, a then 7-year-old girl who experienced searing pain and constant vomiting after taking her mother\u2019s GLP-1 injection. The girl ultimately recovered, though not without having to be repeatedly hospitalized. Similar reports of poisonings tied to GLP-1s have skyrocketed in the state and nationwide as of late.<\/p>\n \u201cShe couldn\u2019t walk from exhaustion and severe pain,\u201d Melissa Milender, Jessa\u2019s mother, told WTHR. \u201cShe wouldn\u2019t even allow them to touch her stomach. She\u2019d scream out in pain in her sleep. It was awful.\u201d<\/p>\n A tragic mistake <\/p>\n GLP-1 drugs like semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Zepbound and Mounjaro) have changed obesity treatment for the better, allowing people to lose significantly more weight on average than they would with diet and exercise alone. But like any drug, GLP-1 medications have their side effects, which are typically gastrointestinal. These side effects can be worse when people take more of the drug than prescribed or when people who shouldn\u2019t take it end up doing so. There have even been cases of people getting sick from counterfeit<\/a> medications containing\u00a0other drugs.<\/p>\n According to medical records viewed by WTHR, Jessa injected her stomach with her mother\u2019s Mounjaro around December 16, 2024. Melissa soon noticed what happened and called her local poison control center. The center advised her that Jessa would likely experience symptoms like vomiting and abdominal pain. However, the warning hardly prepared the family for what came next.<\/p>\n Jessa started severely vomiting hours after the injection, to the point that she couldn\u2019t keep a glass of water down. She was admitted to a local medical center on December 18, where she was given medication and an IV. She went home the next day and seemed fine that night. But soon enough, the vomiting returned\u201410 to 15 times a day, her parents reported. She was readmitted to the hospital, and doctors feared that her kidneys were at risk of shutting down, according to medical records. Thankfully, despite two more days in the hospital, Jessa\u2019s symptoms did eventually abate, and she was discharged on December 23.<\/p>\n Over a year later, Jessa has fully recovered from her ordeal, her family said.<\/p>\n A growing trend <\/p>\n Severe cases like Jessa\u2019s are rare, but reports of GLP-1 overdoses are generally increasing<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Indiana Poison Center told WTHR that poison control calls linked to GLP-1s doubled last year, from 153 calls in 2024 to 320 calls in 2025. The national organization, America\u2019s Poison Centers, has also reported<\/a> a dramatic spike, with a nearly 1500% increase in calls related to injectable weight loss drugs since 2019. Between 2019 and 2025, there were roughly 23,000 such calls made to poison centers nationwide.<\/p>\n