2023 has been the year of the weight loss drug, specifically Ozempic.
Ozempic was originally approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes, but the medication has increasingly been prescribed off-brand for weight loss, along with several other similar medications.
Weight loss drugs have caused a stir of controversy in Hollywood, with some celebrities being accused of using them and denying it, while others, like Oprah Winfrey and Sharon Osbourne, have admitted to using them and they are sharing the impact they’ve had.
Read on for the stars who have confessed to using Ozempic or other weight loss drugs.
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Oprah Winfrey recently admitted to using medication to combat a lifelong battle with her fluctuating weight.
Winfrey explained to People, "I realized I’d been blaming myself all these years for being overweight, and I have a predisposition that no amount of willpower is going to control. Obesity is a disease. It’s not about willpower – it's about the brain."
"The fact that there's a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime, feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for," Winfrey said. "I’m absolutely done with the shaming from other people and particularly myself."
The former talk show host, who never specified which medication she was using, said she also made lifestyle changes like hiking regularly, as well as stopping eating at 4 o’clock, drinking a gallon of water a day, and using "the Weight Watchers principles of counting points."
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Winfrey’s choice and openness about using weight loss medication have been met with mixed reactions, in part from her position as an ambassador for Weight Watchers (WW) since 2017.
One person wrote on social media, "What happened to Weight Watchers? Too much work?"
"I guess weight watchers don't work,.. right Oprah!!" wrote another.
"I know Oprah's metabolism is a mess. She's been a spokesperson for every weight-loss product, except surgery, since the 80s." wrote a third.
Others were more supportive. "Here’s the thing: she didn’t have to lose her weight according to anyone else’s expectations or standards. She did what worked FOR HER. Y’all gonna have to figure out what works for you. That’s not on Oprah," wrote a fan.
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Sharon Osbourne has been open about her use of Ozempic and the positive and negative effects she’s experienced.
In November, the 70-year-old told the Daily Mail she was "too gaunt and I can’t put any weight on," noting she weighed less than 100 pounds following her use of Ozempic.
"Be careful what you wish for," she added.
The television personality said she started Ozempic last December and has been off it "for a while now," but seems to continue losing weight.
"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 42 pounds and I can’t afford to lose any more," she said.
In August, she detailed some of the unpleasant side effects she experienced on the "Club Random with Bill Maher" podcast.
"It’s different for everybody, but for me, the first few weeks was f---ing s--- because you just throw up all the time. You feel so nauseous," Osbourne said.
"After a couple of weeks, it goes," she added, "and then you’re just fine, you feel nothing. Just not hungry."
Osbourne also revealed she used to slide back into bad habits, noting she’s "always had a weight problem," but hasn’t after being on Ozempic. "Usually I do, I’ll give it a couple of weeks and then I’m like, f--- it, I’ll have pasta," she said.
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Amy Schumer admitted she’d tried Ozempic, and took other celebrities to task for supposedly not being truthful about their use of the medication.
On an episode of "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen" in April, the comedian blasted stars for saying they lost weight by simply eating "smaller portions" and "lying" about using the injectable drug.
"You are on Ozempic or one of those things or you got work done. Just stop" she said.
Schumer said she tried it, but experienced bad side effects.
"It's like, you know, you try it. And I was one of those people that felt so sick and couldn’t play with my son. I was so skinny, and he’s throwing a ball at me and [I couldn’t]," adding, "And you're like, ‘OK, this isn’t livable for me.'"
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Tracy Morgan opened up about using Ozempic for weight loss during an appearance on "Today with Hoda & Jenna."
When asked about working on his body and health, the "SNL" alum said, "That’s how this weight got lost. I went and got a prescription and I got Ozempic."
He added, "And I ain't letting it go!"
Morgan explained he takes weekly injections "every Thursday," and said "It cuts my appetite in half. Now I only eat half a bag of Doritos."
Chelsea Handler admitted to being on Ozempic, but not realizing it at first.
"My anti-aging doctor just hands it out to anybody, right," the comedian told Alex Cooper on her "Call Her Daddy" podcast. "And obviously now I can’t say her name, but I didn’t even know I was on it."
She added her doctor told her, "'If you ever want to drop five pounds, this is good.'"
Handler also experienced nausea, recalling that she injected the drug following a trip to Spain during a meeting with a friend. Her friend said, "I’m not really eating anything, I’m so nauseous, I’m on Ozempic," Handler explained. "I was like, ‘Oh, I’m kind of nauseous, too,’ and I’m like, ‘But I’m not on Ozempic,’ and she’s like, ‘Are you sure?’" The friend noted she was on the drug after Handler said she was using semaglutide, the generic name for the drug.
Handler opted to discontinue using the drug, saying it was "silly because it's for heavy people."
"That’s too irresponsible," she added. "I’m an irresponsible drug user, but I’m not going to take a diabetic drug … I tried it, and I’m not going to do that."
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Rosie O’Donnell shared on her TikTok in January that she had lost 10 pounds thanks to two different medications.
"About two months ago my doctor put me on – not Ozempic, Mounjaro – and Repatha," she explained. "One I do every other week and one I do once a week."
The former talk show host and comedian said she made other lifestyle changes, like stopping a regular soda habit.
"I really stopped drinking five or six Cokes a day. All I drink is water now," O'Donnell said.
She also said, "I'm not eating sugar as much as I can. My appetite has decreased significantly. It's probably the meds. And I'm trying to move more. So, all those things combined, that's what it is."
In another video, O’Donnell noted that she thinks less about food, saying, "Yeah, it's funny because I used to think about it a lot and now I don't think about it at all. It's like it alters something in your thought process. I don't know, it's weird, right?"
O’Donnell had previously had vertical gastric sleeve surgery in 2013, following a near widowmaker heart attack in 2012 at age 50.
