diff --git a/package/glibc/glibc.mk b/package/glibc/glibc.mk
index 45155fdc28..5772c3355b 100644
--- a/package/glibc/glibc.mk
+++ b/package/glibc/glibc.mk
@@ -118,6 +118,11 @@ ifeq ($(BR2_nios2),y)
 GLIBC_CFLAGS += -O2
 endif
 
+# glibc can't be built without optimization
+ifeq ($(BR2_OPTIMIZE_0),y)
+GLIBC_CFLAGS += -O1
+endif
+
 # glibc can't be built with Optimize for fast
 ifeq ($(BR2_OPTIMIZE_FAST),y)
 GLIBC_CFLAGS += -O2