Yes, Victoza is a once-daily injection. You inject it under the skin at any time of day, with or without food. There’s no requirement to take it at the same time each day, and you don’t need to coordinate it with meals.
Why Victoza Is Daily, Not Weekly
Victoza contains liraglutide, a modified version of a hormone your body naturally produces called GLP-1. The natural form of this hormone breaks down in about two minutes, far too fast to be useful as a medication. Liraglutide has been chemically altered with a fatty acid attachment that slows its breakdown, extending its activity long enough to work with once-daily dosing.
This is different from newer medications in the same class. Ozempic (semaglutide) and Trulicity (dulaglutide) are both once-weekly injections. Their molecular structures were engineered to last even longer in the body. If the daily injection schedule is a concern, a weekly alternative may be worth discussing with your prescriber.
How the Dose Builds Over Time
You don’t start on the full dose right away. The standard schedule for adults works in steps:
- Week 1: 0.6 mg daily. This is purely a starter dose to let your body adjust. It won’t meaningfully control blood sugar on its own.
- Week 2 onward: 1.2 mg daily. This is the first effective maintenance dose.
- Optional increase: If blood sugar control isn’t sufficient after at least one more week, the dose can go up to 1.8 mg daily.
Children aged 10 and older follow the same starting dose, but each step up happens only if more blood sugar control is needed. The gradual increase exists for a practical reason: jumping straight to a full dose tends to cause more nausea and digestive discomfort.
What Victoza Is Approved to Treat
Victoza is FDA-approved for two purposes. The first is improving blood sugar control in adults and children 10 and older with type 2 diabetes, alongside diet and exercise. The second is reducing the risk of major cardiovascular events (heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular death) in adults with type 2 diabetes who already have established heart disease. It is not approved for type 1 diabetes.
Where and How to Inject
Victoza goes under the skin of your abdomen, thigh, or upper arm. You should rotate the injection site each time rather than using the same spot repeatedly, which helps prevent skin irritation or tissue changes at the injection site. If you switch to a different area or change the time of day you inject, no dose adjustment is needed.
The medication comes in a prefilled, multi-dose pen, meaning one pen contains several days’ worth of doses. You attach a new needle tip before each injection.
What to Do If You Miss a Dose
If you miss a single day, skip that dose and take your next one at the usual time. Don’t double up to make up for it. If you miss three or more consecutive days, contact your prescriber before restarting. You may need to go through the titration steps again to avoid a spike in side effects.
Storing the Pen
Unused pens belong in the refrigerator, between 36°F and 46°F. Once you start using a pen, it can stay at room temperature (up to 86°F) or go back in the fridge, your choice. Either way, a pen in use is good for 30 days from the day you first take it out of the refrigerator. After 30 days, discard it even if medication remains inside.
Common Side Effects During Titration
The most frequently reported side effects are digestive: nausea, diarrhea, and sometimes vomiting. These tend to be strongest during the first few weeks while your body adjusts, which is exactly why the dosing schedule starts low. The starter dose of 0.6 mg exists specifically to reduce these gastrointestinal symptoms during the initial period. Most people find the nausea decreases or resolves as they settle into their maintenance dose.