Sharon Osbourne has opened up about using the popular weight loss injection Ozempic, including the little-known side effects.
The Celebrity Big Brother star shared that the injectable Ozempic that she'd been using caused her BMI to drop dramatically, among other things.
Ozempic, a drug that is designed to treat those suffering with type 2 diabetes, is not licensed as a weight loss treatment.
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However, non-diabetics have been using Ozempic to drop some pounds, and through its active ingredient semaglutide, they can suppress their appetites and craving for food.
The former X Factor judge said she used the jabs over a four-month period, but she was left nauseous after using them every day.
"In my life, the heaviest I was 230 pounds and I’m now under a hundred and I want to maintain about 105 because I’m too skinny," she told E! News.
"But I’m trying to have a healthy balance."
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In 2021, semaglutide was officially approved as a weight loss treatment, leading to ‘off-label prescribing’.
Manufactured by Danish pharmaceutical giant, Novo Nordisk, the drug has since been rebranded into two categories - 'Ozempic' for diabetes issues and 'Wegovy' for weight loss and management.
Sharon stopped using the drug and told Piers Morgan on TalkTV: “It’s just time to stop, I didn’t actually want to go this thin but it just happened. I'll probably put it all on again soon!”
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During a discussion on The Talk in June about losing weight by using injections, Sharon said: "But I took (the injection.) I took it for four months and I lost 30 pounds, but like everything, there’s always no quick recipe.
"I was very sick for a couple of months. The first couple of months, I just felt nauseous.
"Every day I felt nauseous, my stomach was upset, whatever. But listen, I took it for four months, I lost 30 pounds. I’ve just shoved two chips in my mouth, while we had the break, and I eat normally now and I haven’t put on a pound. Nothing."
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After her mum’s stark warning about the drug, daughter Kelly Osbourne opened up to E! News, and described the weight loss jab as being 'amazing'.
"I think it’s amazing and I think it’s great for them," she told the outlet. "There are a million ways to lose weight, why not do it through something that’s isn’t as boring as working out?"
The star added: "People hate on it because they want to do it. The people who hate on it the most are the people who are secretly doing it or p*ssed off that they can’t afford it.
"Unfortunately, right now it’s something that is very expensive but it eventually won’t be because it actually works."
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Numerous celebrities have come out to speak about the weight-loss jab - including the likes of James Corden - with some touting it as the holy grail of drugs, and others bashing it.
However, it could do a lot more harm than good.
Suzanne Wylie, GP and medical adviser for IQ doctor, told Tyla that this weight loss drug could prove to be harmful.
Wylie explained: “Gastrointestinal issues such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea are common, but more severe complications like pancreatitis, gallbladder problems, and kidney failure have also been reported.”
For those living without diabetes, who are using the semaglutide for weightless, ‘Ozempic could also lead to dangerously low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia), which can cause confusion, fainting, and seizures’.
Tyla reached out to Novo Nordisk for comment.
Topics: Celebrity, Health, Ozempic, Sharon Osbourne
Britt Jones