What is Foundayo?
Foundayo (orforglipron) is Eli Lilly's once-daily GLP‑1 tablet for weight management, taken with or without food. The UAE's drug regulator approved it in April 2026, the second country after the US. In its main US trial, adults on the top dose lost 11.1% of their weight over 72 weeks, against 2.1% on a dummy tablet.
- GLP‑1 medicines are prescription-only in the UAE, and Abu Dhabi's Department of Health tells the public not to buy them without a prescription, online or through adverts.1,2
- Prices here are official prices to the public, from Abu Dhabi's drug list. We don't name, link or rank sellers, and nothing here is for sale.
- Nothing here promises any result. The risks are in Guide 5: Side effects and risks.
How do you take Foundayo?
You take one tablet a day, with or without food, starting at 0.8 mg and stepping up at least 30 days apart to 2.5 mg, then 5.5 mg.3
After that, it can rise one step at a time, at least 30 days apart, to 9, 14.5 and 17.2 mg, depending on how you respond.3 Daman's guideline lists the same first steps.4 Swallow the tablet whole and don't take more than one a day.3 Because it doesn't need an empty stomach, it is easier to time in Ramadan than the Wegovy pill; see Does a GLP‑1 injection break my fast?
Who is it for?
Foundayo is approved for adults with obesity, or with overweight and at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure.3,5
The US label sets that at a BMI of 30 or more, or 27 or more with a condition.3 Abu Dhabi's standard is stricter for GLP‑1 medicines: a BMI of at least 30 with a related condition, or over 40.6 In Abu Dhabi, the Department of Health covers Foundayo for adults eligible for its Personalised Weight Management Programme.7 Who qualifies where is in What BMI do I need for weight-loss injections in the UAE?
What does it cost, and how well does it work?
Foundayo costs AED 773 for 30 tablets at 0.8 mg or 2.5 mg, AED 1,115 at 5.5 mg, AED 1,412 at 9 mg and AED 1,599 at 14.5 or 17.2 mg, on Abu Dhabi's official drug list.8
In Trial 1, 3,127 adults without diabetes lost 11.1% of their weight on 17.2 mg over 72 weeks, 8.3% on 9 mg and 7.4% on 5.5 mg, against 2.1% on a dummy tablet.3 The National reported that the UAE expected it in pharmacies from May 2026.5 More on how GLP‑1 medicines work is in Guide 2.
- Stomach effects are very common. On Foundayo 17.2 mg, 35 in 100 people felt sick (nausea) and 24 in 100 vomited, against 10 and 4 in 100 on a dummy tablet, in the US trials.3
- Label warnings on the US Foundayo label include acute pancreatitis, gallbladder disease and a boxed warning on thyroid C-cell tumours seen in rodents.3
- Not for everyone. Abu Dhabi's Thiqa policy leaves out people with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer or MEN2, anyone who has had pancreatitis, and pregnant or breastfeeding women.9
Read the full picture
Related questions
Sources
- Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Circular 10/2025, 4 Feb 2025: alert against counterfeit Ozempic and Mounjaro sold through social media and a website; the medicines are prescription-only under UAE law; the public should buy them only with a prescription, from pharmacies, and not online or through adverts. Summarised, not reproduced. doh.gov.ae (PDF)
- Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Circular 48/2026, 16 Mar 2026: alert against counterfeit weight-loss products; GLP-1 receptor agonists such as semaglutide, tirzepatide and liraglutide are prescription-only medicines; the products in the alert are not registered with the Emirates Drug Establishment but are sold online and on social media; report adverse reactions to the DoH Pharmacovigilance program ([email protected]). Summarised, not reproduced. doh.gov.ae (PDF)
- Eli Lilly. Foundayo (orforglipron) tablets, US prescribing information, revised 7/2026: once daily, "with or without food"; 0.8 mg for at least 30 days, then 2.5 mg, then 5.5 mg, then optionally 9, 14.5 or 17.2 mg; Trial 1 (72 weeks, 3,127 adults without diabetes): −11.1% body weight on 17.2 mg vs −2.1% on placebo; Table 1: nausea 35% and vomiting 24% on 17.2 mg vs 10% and 4% on placebo; warnings include acute pancreatitis, gallbladder disease and a boxed warning on thyroid C-cell tumours. US label. uspl.lilly.com
- Daman (National Health Insurance Company). Glucagon-like Peptide-1 (GLP-1) Receptor Agonist adjudication guideline, V5, effective 15 Jan 2023, revised 19 Apr 2026 (diabetes criteria including HbA1c ≥ 6.5% and 6 months of other treatment; first request limited to 1 month; eligible prescribers Internal Medicine, Endocrinology, Family Medicine, Cardiologist; obesity medicines "not covered for members who are not enrolled in the Thiqa Obesity Program"; Table 1 lists the brands and dose steps). damaninsurance.ae (PDF)
- The National. UAE-approved daily weight loss pill to be made available next month (Emirates Drug Establishment approved orforglipron, brand Foundayo, "this week"; second country to authorise it; once-daily tablet; expected in pharmacies from May 2026). 4 Apr 2026. thenationalnews.com
- Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Standard for Non-Surgical Management of Obesity, DOH/ST/HPS/Non-Surgical-MO/V1/2025, February 2025 (GLP-1 starting criteria: BMI of at least 30 with one or more weight-related comorbidities, or BMI over 40; continue beyond 6 months only with at least 5% weight loss; "The obesity certified physician determines the initiation time of pharmacological treatment"; the physician "has training in obesity management and certification approved by DoH"; people of Asian origin may carry risk at BMI over 23). doh.gov.ae (PDF)
- Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi expands access to innovative daily oral obesity treatment ("covered for adults eligible for the Personalised Weight Management Programme"; the UAE is "the second country globally after the United States to approve this treatment"). News release, 24 Apr 2026. doh.gov.ae
- Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Shafafiya drug price list (Drugs.xlsx), released 26 Sep 2026, effective 2 Oct 2026: official “Package Price to Public” for each pack named here, each listed as a prescription-only medicine (“POM”). Downloaded and checked 12 Oct 2026. shafafiyaportal.doh.gov.ae (XLSX)
- Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Thiqa reimbursement policy for obesity medications, DoH/Policy/TRP-OMM/HPS/V1/2025, published and effective 11 Jun 2025 (adults 18+; BMI rules in 3.2.2; prescribers in 3.2.3; more than 5% weight loss plus an activity target in 3.2.4; 1-month trial, up to 3 months' supply, check at 4 months in 3.3–3.4; cover continues even if BMI reaches 24.9 or below, 3.5.1.1). doh.gov.ae (PDF)
Last checked 12 Oct 2026 · Next review due 12 Oct 2027 · Report an error
How this answer was made. Written by the GLP Guidebook team from the sources above, all checked on 12 Oct 2026. Prices are official prices to the public from Abu Dhabi's drug list, never a discount, and we don't name, link or rank sellers. Figures marked as our arithmetic are worked out from those sources. It's general information, not medical advice, and religious questions are for a scholar you trust. Talk to a UAE-licensed doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine. How we write