Ozempic®

Death Becomes Her, Why This New Diabetes Drug Is the New Botox To The Rich and Famous

Oh, wait it can cost you up to $1,500 a month

I need to lose ten pounds, and I know what worked for me in the past.

Dump the f*cking sugar!

But for some reason, it is harder this time. I know losing weight will help me with my mood swings, which were fewer when I was on a low-carb diet.

No excuses, my body, my choices, and I take full responsibility. Full stop!

Many aren’t as lucky, because every weight loss journey is personal. Some tried and failed not because they cheated but because no matter how much they try — not even a pound goes off their bodies.

What if there is a magic potion for weight loss, will you take it?

Remember the black comedy Death Becomes Her, what if you can drink a magic potion in exchange for eternal youth and a body that society imposes on women as the body to die for? Would you jump the queue?

By the way, Why do men believe they own the rights to women’s bodies?

You don’t have to wait for a magic potion because if you’re rich and famous you can get as much Ozempic as you like, even if it wasn’t designed to be used as a weight loss drug.

“We cannot and will not promote, suggest, or encourage off-label use of our medicines,” says Natalia Salomao, a senior director in Novo Nordisk’s U.S. office.

An off-label use but in Hollywood, anything goes, as what the guy from the street said in Pretty Woman,

This is Hollywood, keep on dreaming.

What is Ozempic?

Diabetes runs in the family. Both my parents are diabetic. Mom was on dialysis for seven years before she died, a complication of her diabetes was renal failure.

The problem with diabetes is that, unlike other fatal diseases, there are no telltale physical signs until it is too late.

Is it food intake or weight or sugar? I really don’t know. I’m not a doctor. My mom was never overweight or obese, neither she ate a lot nor was fond of sugar.

Nothing in her lifestyle is different from mine now that I’m in my 50s.

I knew for years she had to take oral medicines and later insulin to control her blood sugar until it progressed that she needed her life-saving dialysis treatments three times a week.

She died peacefully during the pandemic, unrelated to her diabetes and I count it as a blessing, that mom did not die from Covid-19.

Ozempic — A once-weekly medicine for adults with type 2 diabetes used to improve blood sugar, along with diet and exercise, and reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke, or death in adults with type 2 diabetes and known heart disease. — Ozempic website

Wow! A once-a-week injection and you’re done. I’m sure any diabetic on insulin will appreciate the less invasive way to manage their blood sugar.

Ozempic® is not a weight-loss drug. In the same 2 studies looking at A1C, adults lost on average:

Ozempic®: 8 lb (0.5 mg) and 10 lb (1 mg) vs placebo: 3 lb

Ozempic®: 12 lb (1 mg) and 14 lb (2 mg)

from an average starting weight of 202 lb and 219 lb, respectively. — Ozempic website

Wow! It isn't a weight-loss drug nor does the pharmaceutical company behind the drug say it is, but weight-loss is an off-label ‘benefit.’

And it’s all over their website. Wow! you can ‘lose’ up to 14 pounds, maybe just the right number of pounds to lose to fit in a Marilyn Monroe dress.

People are asking:

Is Ozempic for weight loss? Ozempic® is not a weight-loss drug. It is a medicine for adults with type 2 diabetes that, along with diet and exercise, may improve blood sugar.

What does Ozempic do exactly? Non-insulin Ozempic® works with your body’s own ability to lower blood sugar and A1C. Ozempic® is designed to respond when your blood sugar rises, helping your body to release its own insulin.

How long do you stay on Ozempic for weight loss? In the phase 3 trial that measured outcomes at 20 weeks, most participants were able to reach the full dose and also lost weight as their dose was increased. They saw additional weight loss over the remaining 48 weeks at the full dose.

But as in all drugs, not everyone can benefit from Ozempic, in fact on their website,

Ozempic® may cause serious side effects, including:

Possible thyroid tumors, including cancer. Tell your health care provider if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, hoarseness, trouble swallowing, or shortness of breath. These may be symptoms of thyroid cancer. In studies with rodents, Ozempic® and medicines that work like Ozempic® caused thyroid tumors, including thyroid cancer. It is not known if Ozempic® will cause thyroid tumors or a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) in people. — Ozempic website

Here is the best time to add a disclaimer,

Any information you read here is for informational purposes only. It is best to consult a medical doctor if you want to know more about diabetes, weight loss and Ozempic. My story isn’t in any way medical advice. I’m sharing what I have read, and experienced none of which can be construed as an endorsement of any drug or product. Thank you.

Celebrity weight loss

I have been sharing celebrity weight loss stories. Each one of them inspires me to lose weight. And each celebrity has their own weight loss journey, their reasons may not be all that different from ours when we decide to lose weight.

Adele did it and lost 100 pounds.

Rebel Wilson did it and lost 77 pounds.

Kim Kardashian did it and lost 21 pounds.

Drew Barrymore did it and lost 20 pounds.

The secret is out in the bag. Not only celebrities but the rich and famous have been using Ozempic like they are known to be the first to use Botox to make them look young-er.

Come to think of it, Botox wasn’t discovered to make you look young and free from wrinkles, its use today was discovered by accident.

It was one of the worst kept secrets in Hollywood, In this Variety report, many stars during the recent Emmys shouldn’t only be thanking the people that helped them win their awards, the designers who made their gowns but many had to thank Ozempic.

If not for the drug, many stars would have looked 10 pounds heavier on camera.

But the controversy comes from the people using Ozempic, many aren’t pre-diabetic or diabetic and are using the drug to help them lose weight.

Every time someone without diabetes uses Ozempic it takes that drug away from someone whose life depends on it or at least helps regulate their blood sugar.

Like the lead characters in Death Becomes Her many celebrities will do anything to stay young and sexy. So, even with the steep price the drug commands, which can be as high as $1,500 a month, nobody cares.

And insurance companies are trying their best not to subsidize Ozempic unless one is pre-diabetic.

The drug made international headlines three months ago after going viral on TikTok, as the trend #MyOzempicJourney showcased eye-popping transformations (the Guardian reported the #Ozempic hashtag had been viewed 74 million times on the platform). Earlier this month, Town and Country wrote a dispatch claiming the medicine was the talk of coastal dinner parties. Glamour magazine followed suit. — Excerpt, Hollywood’s Secret New Weight Loss Drug, Revealed: The Hype and Hazards of Ozempic

Final words

Is weight an issue? To me, it is not because I’m vain or trying to look younger than my age. I can feel it when I’m heavy, and losing the pounds helps me maintain not only my physical health but also my mental well-being.

Will I be using Ozempic if I can afford it? I won’t. Because not only do we know very little about how it affects your body in long-term use.

“The longest study done on these injections was conducted over less than two years. A lot of questions have not been answered.” -Dr. Zhaoping Li, chief of clinical nutrition at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA

Also, the pounds that I feel I need to lose, I can lose by changing my eating habits and also by my time-tested low-carb diet. Again, this might not work for you.

Like any miracle weight loss drug, there is skepticism about long-term use. In addition to a leaner figure, a notable side effect is “gastrointestinal phenomena — bloating, constipation, diarrhea,” according to Town and Country.

When asked about this unpleasant risk, one talent publicist put it bluntly: “Who cares? Everyone who works in this business has IBS, anyway.”

While some swear by it, some have experienced heart palpitations so bad that they had to stop taking the drug.

Weight loss is a multi-billion business, the holy grail of finding a pill to pop is still anyone’s game. But for now, the rich and famous have their new ‘Botox’ and none of them are talking about how unethical it is to use a drug, not for its designed usage and also to take away that drug from people who are sick with diabetes.

Because diabetes is a disease that kills people. It may not appear to be as life-threatening as cancer, but the complications of high blood sugar do.

So, while the rich and famous treat their new toy (drug) as business as usual, all part of their desire to stay young and beautiful.

None of them learned the lesson from Death Becomes Her, everyone dies in the end, or as the lead characters in the movie were, they can never escape the stench of death.

Thank you for reading.

Sources:

Hollywood’s Secret New Weight Loss Drug, Revealed: The Hype and Hazards of Ozempic

How a Diabetes Drug Became the New Weight Loss Trend for the Rich

Here are some of my stories, all complimentary.

✨Can You Lose Weight Without Exercise Like Tim Ferriss — Free Reading.

✨What Does Losing 100 Pounds Do for Your Body, Ask Adele — Free Reading.

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