Mail Online
A top doctor has slammed the celebrity usage of Ozempic and claimed they are giving the weight loss drug a ‘terrible name’.
Dr Nick Coatsworth appeared on the Today show on Friday to discuss the drug becoming a trend in Hollywood after stars have admitted to using it to lose weight.
The physician, who specialises in infectious diseases, claimed that the Hollywood stars who are using Ozempic to slim down have given the drug a ‘terrible name’.
Ozempic is a diabetes medication but it is also being sold privately for weight loss, and celebrities including Sharon Osbourne, Amy Schumer, Boy George and Heather Gay have admitted to using the drug.
Speaking about the rise in celebrities using it, Dr Coatsworth alleged that many of the stars using Ozempic are not of a weight where they need to be on the drug.
He said: ‘I think Ozempic has been given a terrible name now by the celebrity usage, and obviously most celebrities are of the weight that you don’t need to use those Ozempic at all, but if you are carrying more weight, in particular a body mass index of greater than 30, it can have quite a remarkable weight loss effect.
‘It is in that sense a wonder drug. It’s elevated Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer, to the number one company in Denmark. That’s how good it is.’
It comes after the manufacturer of blockbuster weight loss drugs has urged Hollywood stars to stop hogging Ozempic and similar medications because of shortages.
In a bizarre 30-second advert on television, Eli Lilly – which makes weight loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound – urged those who are not obese to steer clear of the weight loss drugs.
It said they had only been tested and approved for people who were overweight or obese – who have a higher risk of other conditions like heart disease and cancer – or who have type two diabetes.
A caption on the advert read: ‘Some people have been using medicine never meant for them. For the smaller dress or tux. For a big night. For vanity.
‘But that’s not the point. People whose health is affected by obesity are the reason we work on these medications.’
Eli Lilly’s CEO David Ricks also recently told CNN: ‘We have a point of view about how these drugs are being used.
‘These medications were invented for people with a serious health condition; they were not invented just to have someone who is famous look a little bit better.’
Blockbuster weight loss drugs — which cost about $950 a month out-of-pocket — have been in shortage for months amid surging demand.
The number of prescriptions written for weight loss drugs in the US has surged more than 2,000 percent since 2019 — from 230,000 prescriptions in 2019.
The drugs, which are given via a weekly injection, work by mimicking a hunger hormone in the body, making someone feel full even if they haven’t eaten recently.
Celebrities including Chelsea Handler, Elon Musk and Patti Stanger have admitted to taking Ozempic, while speculation has been rife around other stars using it.
Chelsea previously said she shed a few pounds on the drug but stopped using it after she realized it was Ozempic, saying it should be left for diabetes patients.
She said: ‘I’m not on it anymore. That’s too irresponsible. I’ve injected about four or five of my friends with Ozempic because I realized I didn’t want to use it ’cause it’s silly. It’s for heavy people.’
Tesla CEO Elon also said he lost almost 30lbs (13.6kg) while on the drug, saying his transformation was due to ‘Fasting + Ozempic/Wegovy + no tasty food for me’.
Sharon Osbourne has also revealed she took Ozempic, but said she lost so many pounds on the drug that she ‘needed to put weight back on‘.
The 71-year-old started taking the drug last December when she weighed 142lbs (64.4kg) and shed more than 45lbs (20kg) on the medication, but then her weight fell down to 97lbs (43kg).
She told Women magazine: ‘You can lose so much weight and it’s easy to become addicted to that, which is very dangerous.
‘I couldn’t stop losing weight and now I’ve lost 42lbs — and I can’t afford to lose anymore.’
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