What You Need to Know Before Taking Ozempic | Opinion

To bring clarity, we must first set the stage. Nowadays issues as significant as America's obesity crisis have become so third rail you risk losing your livelihood and being excommunicated from society should you dare to not follow mainstream narratives. When it comes to obesity those are as follows: Health happens at any size. Or, while obesity is dangerous, it's a genetic condition out of the "afflicted" individual's control.

Even Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, a member of the Biden USDA's 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, claimed, "The number one cause of obesity is genetics. That means that, if you were born to parents that have obesity, you have a 50 to 85 percent likelihood of having the disease yourself even with optimal diet, exercise, sleep management, stress management."

These narratives are untrue. There is zero data to back up either claim and a robust amount of data contradicting them. Dr. Cody's claim is also patently false. While people do have a 50 to 85 percent likelihood of obesity if they were born to overweight parents, they are not immune to "optimal diet, exercise, sleep management , and stress management." Quite the opposite and there is an overwhelming amount of clinical data that says so.

On the genetics claim alone, a simple Google search shows that prior to the 1950s less than 5 percent of American adults were categorized as obese. Whereas now, an estimated 160 million Americans are categorized as obese or overweight—nearly 70 percent of American men and over 60 percent of American women. That's one hell of a quantum leap for genetics.

While genetics play a role, we can powerfully affect the expression of genetics via lifestyle choices (food, exercise, sleep, stress management). And it's no coincidence that if you search the data, calorie consumption has increased dramatically over the decades and activity has decreased, begetting the positive correlation with the simultaneous rise in obesity statistics.

Regardless of the facts, we're being told by many who would be considered the "greatest authorities" in this field that healthy eating and exercise don't work. Why? This type of messaging isn't honest, incentivizing, or inspiring. And it would appear that's the point.

Enter Ozempic, a panacea to solve your weight loss woes.

Ozempic is a brand name for the drug Semaglutide. Wegovy and Rybelsus are also semaglutide drugs on the market. What differentiates them is the means of taking it (pill versus injection), and dosage. Ozempic and Rybelsus are Type 2 diabetes drugs being prescribed off label for weight loss, but Wegovy was FDA approved for weight loss as an "anti-obesity drug" in 2021.

It should come as no surprise that within a year's time the U.S. medical guidelines changed for the first time in history to include "anti-obesity medications" and even surgery as part of an "integrated approach to combat obesity." Even the American Academy of Pediatrics jumped onboard. Drugs and surgery for 12-year-old kids and up. That's one hell of a pivot from Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" campaign.

But are these drugs safe? Here are some of the "side effects" straight from Ozempic's website:

—Possible thyroid tumors, including cancer;

—Inflammation of your pancreas (pancreatitis);

—Kidney problems (kidney failure);

—Changes in vision;

—Serious allergic reactions;

—Gallbladder problems;

—Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach (abdominal) pain, and constipation.

That's a hefty price to pay, is it worth it?

Ozempic's efficacy was studied in four 68-week trials (nearly a year and a half). During this time frame participants had a "mean weight loss of 14.9% from baseline." For a 170 pound woman that would look like a total of 25 pounds lost (only a third of a pound a week).

You'll likely gain the weight back. Studies which explored weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of Semaglutide showed that blood sugar levels increased, and participants gained two-thirds of their weight back within the first year alone.

In this cost benefit analysis, the following information is arguably the most interesting. Ozempic helps facilitate weight loss by making you eat less. Yup. That's it. It mimics a hormone called Glucagon-like-peptide-1 (GLP-1). GLP-1 plays a role in slowing digestion making you feel fuller for longer and helping to regulate appetite by impacting hunger centers in the brain. No magic to it. It's calorie reduction. Apparently eating less does help you lose weight after all.

Based on the above, it's reasonable to say that without "anti-obesity drugs," a minimal reduction in caloric intake and a modest increase in activity will not only deliver these results but likely improve upon them significantly with none of the previously mentioned side effects.

So why the hard push for obesity drugs? Follow the money. Big business is committed to getting you addicted. Whether it's the food that makes you sick or the drugs peddled as the remedy.

It's also interesting to note, Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford does take money from the company that makes Ozempic (Novo Nordisk) and is featured on their website.

Bottom line, to safeguard yourself against corporate profiteering at your detriment we must reject these false messages of helplessness and channel the desire and desperation making us vulnerable to propaganda for these drugs into a sustainable solution—one that improves our overall health instead of ravaging it.

A good place to start would be finding support in community. Considering counseling, seeking out information and help from experts with no agenda except our well-being, defer to our common sense, and above all, trust in our ability to create meaningful changes without the interference of conflicted outside influences.

In the immortal words of Nancy Reagan, "Just say no."

Jillian Michaels has dominated the health and wellness space globally in every realm of media—apps, podcasting, streaming, television, print, publishing, and social media with a collective community of over 100 million strong. The Fitness App created by Jillian is the top-rated diet and exercise app for women. She is an Emmy-nominated television talent having starred in multiple hit TV shows and her fitness DVDs are the highest grossing, best-selling home workouts in history. She is the author of eight New York Times best-selling books, and host of the award-winning podcast, Keeping It Real: Conversations with Jillian Michaels. She is also a world-renowned public speaker, having successfully completed two sold out global speaking tours. Follow her on Instagram/Twitter/TikTok: @JillianMichaels.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.