As Hollywood is deep in its Ozempic era, there is rampant speculation about how its side effects are showing up in unexpected places.
Reports online claimed that “Ozempic feet”—which is the sagging and wrinkling of one's skin on the feet—is one of the side effects of GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro.
Netizens have speculated whether celebrities like Sharon Osbourne and Oprah Winfrey have started showing unexpected foot-related side effects.
Highlights
- “Ozempic feet” may be the newest side-effect of GLP-1 medication, sources claimed.
- Netizens have questioned whether celebrities like Sharon Osbourne and Oprah Winfrey are showing signs of the side-effect.
- A recent photograph of Sharon had netizens saying “the feet don’t match the face.”
- The sudden loss of weight from taking Ozempic could lead to sagging skin in different parts of the body, experts revealed.
“Ozempic feet” was speculated to be the newest side-effect affecting celebrities
Image credits: Loose Women / YouTube
GLP-1 medication is generally prescribed for type-2 diabetes but has gained popularity for its weight loss effects.
A number of stars have admitted to taking the medication to aid their weight loss journey, including Sharon and Oprah.
Sharon has not only admitted to taking Ozempic but also said she “went too far” with it, losing “three stone [42 pounds] in four months.”
Image credits: sharonosbourne / Instagram
The TV personality’s recent photograph of herself cozying up on a couch with her grandson left people surprised by the appearance of her feet.
“The feet don’t match the face,” a social media user said at the time.
“Her feet speak the truth…” one commenter said, while another wrote, “Beautiful airbrushed photo, but feet tell your age.”
Sharon's recent photograph had people, saying “the feet don’t match the face”
Image credits: sharonosbourne / Instagram
Reports also claimed that media mogul Oprah faced widespread speculation about whether she was experiencing the “Ozempic feet” phenomenon.
The “Ozempic Foot” seems to be an “amalgam of floppy and wrinkly skin on the foot and reports of foot pain,” Dr. C. Michael White, Head and Distinguished Professor, Department of Pharmacy Practice, University of Connecticut, told Bored Panda via email.
He explained that there could be several reasons behind this.
Image credits: Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images
“Losing weight changes both width and the length of your foot. That makes the skin on the foot more floppy and wrinkly but also changes the way that your shoes fit with some people losing a whole shoe size and losing one width size,” he continued. “The body changes are generally great for people’s feet because it puts a lot less weight on them when you walk or run (like the knees and hips as well) but having poorly fitting shoes can make the feet hurt.”
In addition to a potential change in shoe size, drastic weight loss can even alter the way a person’s feet adjust to their new body weight.
“Losing weight can actually change how your foot hits the ground. It may take a little time for people to adjust how they are walking and standing as a result, or they might need changes in the type of shoe inserts they need. Finally, if you develop vitamin deficiency, especially the water soluble B-vitamins, you can get tingling or nerve type pain in the feet,” said the co-director of the Health Outcomes, Policy, and Evidence Synthesis (HOPES) research group.
Image credits: The Magnificent Others with Billy Corgan / YouTube
Rapid and significant weight loss not only affects the feet. It can also cause several cosmetic changes all over the body, including sagging skin and wrinkling in different areas. These cosmetic shifts are not necessarily caused by the drug itself, but rather by what happens when the body sheds weight too quickly.
“The terms ‘Ozempic Face’ and ‘Ozempic Neck’ seem to be cosmetic manifestations of the rapid loss of fat and muscle and not an innate effect of the semaglutide and terzepatide ingredients,” White said.
The sudden loss of weight from taking Ozempic could lead to the sagging of skin in different parts of the body, experts revealed
Image credits: sharonosbourne / Instagram
“Take a balloon and inflate it, wait a couple weeks, and then deflate it. Unlike its out of the package appearance, the balloon is now going to be stretched out, floppy, and more wrinkly. In people who are obese or morbidly obese, excess body fat stores are located all over the body,” he explained.
“When you rapidly lose weight the muscle and collagen from the skin that was stretched out by the excess fat stores are deflated and skin on the face, neck and belly can seem more droopy and wrinkly as a result. Additionally, during periods of calorie deprivation (when you are not taking in enough carbs, protein, or fat), the rapid weight loss is not just due to the fat stores, it is also muscle that is lost,” he continued.
The diet and dietary supplements expert said that even hair could be affected from taking GLP-1 medication.
Image credits: sharonosbourne / Instagram
“There is a new study showing that there is hair thinning that occurs when these GLP-1 or GLP-1/GIP dr*gs are used as well,” White said, “This is also seen in people with significant weight loss from other weight loss approaches or diseases. This is likely due to fewer nutrients needed to produce hair and some hormonal shifts associated with weight loss. Some types of fat cells produce hormones that could influence things like hair growth in the body.”
Dr. Robert Klitzman, Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Bioethics Masters Program at Columbia University, previously told Bored Panda that patients on GLP-1 medication have reported nausea and diarrhea.
“Around 40% of patients have gastrointestinal side effects such as nausea and diarrhea. Longer term risks include gallbladder and kidney and other diseases,” he said. “These may be rare, but data are still being gathered.”
Along with the “Ozempic feet,” the “Ozempic neck” and “Ozempic face” could also be side-effects
Image credits: Ban Trophy Hunting / YouTube
“We don’t know all the long-term risks yet,” Areesha Moiz from McGill University’s Division of Experimental Medicine previously told Bored Panda.
“While the medications seem to be safe in the short term, we don’t have enough data to say for sure how they might affect people years down the road,” added the co-author of a study on the efficacy and safety of using GLP-1 medication for weight loss among adults without diabetes.
GLP-1 medication users may find it unsettling to see their skin sagging or their hair thinning, but White said there are multiple ways to handle the effects.
“First, relax, and put things into perspective. Sustainable weight loss is incredibly important for heart health and joint health, and if you can prevent or reverse diabetes, the health of your eyes and kidneys as well,” White said. “Second, anyone who is going to undergo calorie deprivation to lose weight should be exercising so they can maintain their muscle mass.”
Image credits: Haberdoedas / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
“Combined with shifting more of your calories to protein, you can maintain more muscle and maximize the proportion of weight loss is fat loss. Don’t jump off the couch and start running 10Ks. That can hurt your feet,” he continued. “Build up the intensity of your exercise over time. This will allow you time to adjust how your feet are hitting the ground, allow you time to get shoes that support your new foot dimensions, and to build up resiliency to exercise.”
White said the hair thinning can also be stabilized over time. “The hair loss is more subtle for most people and is usually not recognized by your co-workers, family, and friends. Most men do not report noticing any difference, but women (who generally have longer hair) are more aware,” the expert said.
“Longer term risks include gallbladder and kidney and other diseases,” Dr. Robert Klitzman said
Image credits: sharonosbourne / Instagram
“There is some information showing that cosmetic products that make the skin more hydrated can make sagging and wrinkling less noticeable and over time, some of the sagging will go away on its own as long as you are maintaining this new body weight,” he continued.
The expert also suggested taking daily multivitamins and multiminerals to make sure there is no deficiency with the cut of calories.
“Don’t go crazy and clean out the vitamin store and hammer down mega-dose vitamins and minerals. Just take the one that has near the recommended daily value for those micronutrients,” he added.
Celebrities like Christina Aguilera are often dragged into the Ozempic speculation
Image credits: Alexandra Wyman / Getty Images
The widespread obsession with Ozempic has turned the internet into somewhat of a body-watch patrol. Netizens constantly speculate about the slightest weight loss in a celebrity’s appearance.
Stars like Christina Aguilera, who has never admitted to using the medication, have been targeted by online sleuths.
The Genie in a Bottle singer addressed the relentless speculation last year and said, “I have a maturity now where I just don’t give a f*** about your opinion.”
“Other people’s opinions of me are not my business,” she said in her interview with Glamour.
Netizens had mixed reactions over Sharon's speculated “Ozempic feet”
