Photo:Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty
Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty
Raven-Symonéis the latest celebrity to share her thoughts on the recent Hollywood weight loss trend involving the Type 2 diabetes drugOzempic.
“I have pre-diabetes and diabetes in my family,” theRaven’s Housestar, 37, toldE! Newsin an interview published Tuesday. “If I’m not careful with my intake of types of foods, I am more susceptible to getting diabetes.”
“So, I think it’s very important we understand certain medications are made for certain people and to not take that away just for glamazon purposes,” she explained.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“However, for those who need it, I know people that are on it as well and they need it and it definitely helps to regulate hormones,” continued the actress.
“Do what you gotta do. Just make sure you save some medication for the people that actually need it,” added thelongtime Disney Channel star.
Ozempic andWegovyare brand names for semaglutide, which works in the brain to impact satiety and is the latest Hollywood weight loss trend. Their competitor,Mounjaro, the brand name for tirzepatide, is a once-weekly injectable prescription medication that helps overweight or obese people with Type 2 diabetes lose up to 15% of their body weight, drug makerEli Lillysaid on April 27.
Mario Tama/Getty
Other celebrities have expressed concern about using the FDA-approved antidiabetic medication to lose weight, even when not medically necessary.
Real Housewives of New JerseystarJackie Goldschneidersaid on Page Six’sVirtual Reali-Teapodcast in February that she was “horrified” at how many people are taking Ozempic.
“You start dropping massive amounts of weight. That’s so addicting," she said at the time, noting her ownrecovery from an 18-year eating disorder. “That’s how I spiraled into anorexia. You get addicted to this new body and to the attention that comes with it.”
“I think patients need to work with their provider to evaluate and assess their obesity, their degree of obesity, and what treatments may be best for them,“Ania Jastreboff, M.D., PhD., an obesity medicine physician scientist at Yale University,told PEOPLE in January when askedhow someone can determine if they are a candidate for these medications. “Those treatments may include medications like the ones we’re speaking about today. They may include bariatric surgery. So, those types of these treatments need to be discussed with patients' providers.”
Dr. Caroline Apovian, co-director of the Center for Weight Management and Wellness at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston,recently told PEOPLE the Hollywood trendwas “concerning.”
“You’re taking away from patients with diabetes,” Apovian explained. “We have lifesaving drugs… and the United States public that really needs these drugs can’t get them.”
source: people.com
