Dubbed “Hollywood’s Skinny Jab,” Ozempic continues to make headlines by admitting that celebrities and influencers are using the popular drug to lose weight.
Slimming pills are nothing new, but semaglutide started to gain traction in the past year when demand surged and caused a global shortage.
Semaglutide is branded as two separate drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy.
Ozempic is the brand name for an injectable drug approved only for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
A sister drug, Wegovy, is semaglutide, approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of chronic obesity.
Dr. Deb Cohen-Jones, a Cottesloe general practitioner, had “great success” in prescribing combination glutide to his patients late last year while awaiting approval of the long-acting form by the Australian Medicines Agency (TGA). said there is.
She said a long-acting version (essentially Wegovy) should be available in Australia “soon.”
While most celebrities have kept quiet about whether or not they use the jab, a few have been open about trying.
chelsea handler
Former E! Personality Chelsea Handler has admitted to taking weight loss pills by mistake.
The 47-year-old revealed that she took Ozempic without knowing what it would do.
“I didn’t even know I was working on it,” she said, admitting on the podcast “Call Her Daddy” that “Anti-aging doctors just give it to everyone.”
The entertainer stopped taking the drug after learning it was intended to help diabetics.
“I’m not in it anymore. It’s too irresponsible,” she said.
“I’m an irresponsible drug user, but I’m not going to take diabetes meds. I’ve tried, but I wouldn’t do that. It’s not for me. It’s not right for me.”
Remi Vader
TikTok creator and model Remi Bader has revealed that she took the drug for “a real health problem” shortly after it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
She was prescribed the medicine by her doctor.
In an episode of the “Not Skinny Not Fat” podcast, Vader told host Amanda Hirsch that she started taking drugs before they became “fad drugs.”
She said she was prescribed it because she was pre-diabetic, insulin resistant and had gained weight.
Ms. Vader has been very open about her experience with bulimia. She has 2.2 million followers on her TikTok and advocates fashion that fits size.
She warned people that she had “doubled her weight back” after leaving Ozempik.
“I went to the doctor and he said, ‘100% it’s because you went to Ozempick,'” Vader revealed.
“I thought maybe I hadn’t been hungry in such a long time. I lost a little weight.
“I didn’t want to be obsessed with continuing long-term. I thought I would starve again the moment I left. I did, but the bulimia got worse. So I blamed Ozempic.”
Bader now discourages people who don’t need the drug from taking it, explaining that “there’s not enough supply for those who need it, so it’s even stopping it from reaching the market.” ing.
Elon Musk and Jeremy Clarkson
Even Elon Musk didn’t hesitate to admit to using Ozempic.
The CEOs of Twitter and Tesla tweeted, “Fasting. Fasting.” and Wegovy. “
Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson also admitted that semaglutide helped him lose weight.
Gornesa GG Galachedagi
Shahs of Sunset star Gornesa GG Galachedagi was similarly candid about her health journey.
She did not hide the fact that she used weight loss drugs.
In a video posted to her Instagram page, the 41-year-old admitted: “Unfortunately, due to my health, I had to undergo a lot of steroid injections last year, so I gained a lot of weight,” she said.
“I had a very, very, very hard time getting rid of that weight.
“I did what everyone else was doing and lied. I’m working on losing weight.
“I’m not going to lie about it.”
Garachedagi, who admitted to taking semaglutide, told Entertainment Tonight in May: You know, as some people say, when you quit drinking, suddenly you started exercising. “
Drugs Make You Feel ‘Satiety’ Faster
Both Ozempic and Wegovy reduce appetite and slow down emptying of the stomach, making you feel full sooner, which is why they are so popular for their weight loss benefits.
However, health experts have begun to notice that people are using semaglutide without meeting the clinical criteria for being overweight or obese.
Obesity is defined as a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 30, and overweight is defined as a BMI between 25 and 30. But people with a BMI of less than 25 used Ozempic to “shed some pounds,” says general practitioner Natasha Yates.
There was also concern that people with eating disorders might starve to death from using the drug.
Equally alarming, so many people suddenly had access to off-label drugs to lose weight that people dependent on diabetes medications were unable to get their prescriptions filled and pharmacies were unable to do so. It means that you are coming to
As a result, Australian general practitioners were asked not to prescribe it for the treatment of obesity.
Physicians Warn About Side Effects
Dr. Yates, who is also an assistant professor of general practice at Bond University, notes that, like other drugs, semaglutide is not completely risk-free.
Users commonly complain of nausea, constipation, and diarrhea, but some suffer from acid reflux, fatigue, and complain that food tastes different after taking the drug.
Some users miss their meals and talk about their enjoyment of eating.
Dr. Yates wrote to The Conversation that there are also concerns that it may increase the risk of pancreatitis, thyroid and pancreatic cancer.
And while the research so far is reassuring, there are still many unknowns, she added, as we likely won’t know if there will be a significant increase in the next few years.
Wegovy’s form of semaglutide is specifically designed for weight loss and to date has not been available in Australia, despite US and Australian regulators’ recent approval of Wegovy for that purpose, Dr. Yates said. rice field.
Who will have access to the drug?
Studies show that semaglutide helps 66% to 84% of people lose weight, which Dr. Yates says is “more effective than other drugs on the market.”
She said that after two years, patients have not regained the weight they lost, but only if they continue to take the drug.
“Unfortunately, once discontinued, patients find that up to two-thirds of the weight lost is gradually regained,” Dr. Yates told The Conversation.
“Basically, semaglutide only works while you’re taking it. It ‘cure’, it doesn’t ‘cure.'”
Dr Yates added that even if semaglutide were to become available again for diabetics in Australia, it was unclear who would be able to use semaglutide for weight loss.
Cost becomes a ‘barrier’
Dr. Deb Cohen-Jones believes long-acting glutides will take the lead in 2023 due to their ‘efficacy’ and ‘tolerability’ among users once supply issues are resolved. there is
However, Dr. Yates believes that one of the biggest barriers to using semaglutide for weight loss is cost.
This means that diabetics will continue to have more affordable access to the drug through the Pharmaceutical Benefits System (PBS), but those using it for weight management will be able to self-medicate entirely through a personal prescription. This is because it is necessary to purchase
In 2022, using semaglutide in Australia cost about $130 per month.
Dr. Yates said costs could rise once supply issues are resolved, as maker Novo Nordisk has had to spend millions on building new facilities to meet growing demand for the drug. I think there is a gender.
“In the US, the price is already over $1,000 a month unless covered by insurance,” Dr. Yates noted.
Dr. Cohen-Jones emphasized that semaglutide is an addition to exercise and a healthy diet, not a replacement.
Meanwhile, Australia’s drug regulator, the TGA, is investigating some influencers and online platforms for illegally promoting the drug as a weight-loss treatment.
Australian law does not allow prescription-only medicines to be advertised to the public. The law is intended to protect people from false and misleading claims and to ensure balanced accuracy of drug information.
