Lizzo Is The Latest Celebrity To Address Ozempic Allegations
Ozempic, a brand name for a Type 2 Diabetes drug that has dominated headlines in the last year, is still one of the most talked-about topics in pop culture. The injectable ‘semaglutide’ medication has swept Hollywood and beyond, with everyone from Amy Schumer to Elon Musk admitting to using it to lose weight due to its appetite suppressant side effects.
Oprah Winfrey said she used an unnamed weight loss drug in 2023 to avoid ‘yo-yoing’. She said having the drug available felt ‘like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for’.
As of September 2024, Lizzo has become the latest celebrity to speak openly about Ozempic. Fans of the 'About Damn Time' singer accused her of taking Ozempic, following a weight loss transformation. Debunking the rumours, Lizzo took to her Instagram to deny her use of the drug.
In April 2024, Rebel Wilson commented on the drug during an interview with The Sunday Times ahead of the release of her memoir, Rebel Rising, the actor said it had been a force for good in her life. 'Someone like me could have a bottomless appetite for sweets, so I think those drugs can be good,' she said.
However, among its proponents, there are also those who have criticised the controversial use of diabetic drugs for weight loss. The latest of these is British actor Stephen Fry, who discussed his own experience of taking Ozempic during a recent appearance on the River Café Ruthie’s Table 4 podcast. The 66-year-old broadcaster said that at first he found the results ‘astonishing’, claiming that he simply went off food and alcohol. Reportedly, he lost five-and-a-half stone in a matter of months.
But then, Fry explains, the negative side effects began to kick in. ‘I started feeling sick, and I started getting sicker and sicker and sicker,’ he said. ‘I was literally throwing up four, five times a day and I thought, 'I can’t do this.' So that’s it.’
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The NHS warns that you can only take semaglutide medication if it’s prescribed for you by a specialist weight management service. ‘A doctor might recommend that you take one of these medicines if diet and exercise changes have not worked on their own,’ says NHS UK. ‘You’ll need to eat a balanced, reduced-calorie diet and exercise regularly.’
Lizzo joins a number of A-listers who have spoken out about Ozempic, whether they’re dispelling rumours that they themselves are taking it, or condemning the drug altogether. Here’s a list of the celebrities who have addressed the rising popularity of Ozempic:
Lizzo
Following a weight loss transformation, Lizzo is the latest celebrity to come under fire for allegedly taking Ozempic. The 'Good As Hell' singer has since addressed the allegations on her Instagram account several times over the past couple of days.
After a fan left a comment under a recent post saying: 'Did she use ozempic or did she snort c*ke', Lizzo responded with 'Whyyyy do u follow me?' and added four crying face emojis.'
In a separate post, she captioned her picture with the comment that the aforementioned fan left, and included a series of pictures that captured the exchange, as well as a video which read 'When you finally get ozempic allegations after 5 months of weight training and calorie deficit'.
Kate Winslet
In an interview with The New York Times published at the beginning of March 2024, Winslet said she wasn’t exactly sure what Ozempic was: ‘All I know is that it’s some pill that people are taking or something like that,’ she said. When the drug and its side effects were explained to the actor, she was reportedly appalled. ‘Oh, my God,’ she said. ‘This sounds terrible. Let’s eat some more things!’
Sophie Turner
Turner’s takedown of the ubiquity of weight loss drugs was ingeniously simple, formed of just three letters: ‘WTF’. She added the cutting comment to a re-shared Instagram post to her Stories in 2023, which featured adverts for Wegovy, an Ozempic-like injectable semaglutide medication. Her post included a tweet from writer Sophie Vershbow, who saw the weight-loss adverts in the Times Square subway station and wrote: ‘The Ozempic ads plastered across the Times Square subway station can f*** all the way off.’
Jameela Jamil
The actor and activist often speaks about body issues and has created the popular ‘radically inclusive’ community I Weigh, so it’s unsurprising that she’s spoken out against Ozempic.
In an Instagram post in 2023, she wrote: ‘Rich people are buying this stuff off prescription for upwards of 1000 dollars. Actual diabetics are seeing shortages. It’s now a mainstream craze in Hollywood. HOPE this doesn't end the same way we were told opioids were safe. There is little to no discussion of the side effects in any advertising online. I’m deeply concerned but I can’t change any of your minds because fat phobia has our generation in a chokehold.’ She ended the caption: ‘Wishing you all well and hope you have doctors that care about more than your size.’
Julia Fox
In 2023, Fox responded to rumours that she had used Ozempic to lose weight while she was in a relationship with Kanye West. ‘All these people are coming for me saying that I take the weight loss things... people are saying that I’m taking Ozempic or whatever it’s called,’ she told Entertainment Tonight. ‘I’m not and I never have... I would never do that. There are diabetics that need it.’
Khloé Kardashian
Khloé Kardashian is another celebrity who has hit back at rumours suggesting she’s used weight loss drugs, saying that the idea is an insult to her fitness efforts. ‘Let’s not discredit my years of working out,’ she said in response to an Instagram user suggesting she was on Ozempic. ‘I get up 5 days a week at 6am to train. Please stop with your assumptions. I guess new year still means mean people.’
Ariana Huffington
In 2023, Huffington gave her opinion on the controversial drug to People magazine, advocating achieving healthy eating habits in order to lose weight. ‘If people are diabetic it can really help them. But I think people forget that you also need to eat better,’ she says. ‘You know, if you are on Ozempic and eat junk, processed foods, too much sugar, you are not going to really change your eating habits. And we know that what leads to disease are ultra processed foods and sugar.’
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