Real Housewives of New Jersey star Dolores Catania was among the first crop of celebrities who openly and unabashedly admitted to using Ozempic or a similar drug to lose weight.
Now, after two years of taking it and getting down to her high school weight, Ms Catania said: ‘I know it’s time for me to wean myself off or go on a lower dose.’
The reality star takes Mounjaro, a medication similar to Ozempic, which contains the active ingredient tirzepatide that mimics hormones in the brain responsible for regulating appetite and feelings of fullness.
Ms Catania weighed 157 lbs when she started taking medication two years ago, starting first with Ozempic and transitioning to Mounjaro. She has since lost at least 30 lbs.
She cautioned that anyone considering the medications ‘must always go through a real doctor, though who knows what they are doing.
‘Research is everything.’
Many people eager to try the groundbreaking obesity medicine find that their insurance plans will not cover the cost, which can be a high $1,200 per month. In that instance, they often shift to online prescribing platforms involving a brief medical professional consultation.
The medication typically comes from a compounding pharmacy, where pharmacists hand-mix it using its main ingredients. The FDA does not regulate this practice, so disingenuous or inattentive practitioners may use faulty ingredients or incorrect dosages.
2024 vs 2018: The 53-year-old reality star has shed more than 20 lbs thanks to the drug Mounjaro
Ms Catania told Hello! that the medicine has been ‘a life changer’ for her and her boyfriend Paul Connell, who has lost 60 pounds.
She added: ‘He no longer takes a certain blood pressure medication, and it’s been really positive. There are side effects like nausea, but you take a pill for that.’
Clinical trials found that people taking Mounjaro could expect to lose around 15 to 20 percent of their body weight over roughly 72 weeks. The drug works best when taken with a healthy diet and exercise regimen.
Ms Catania shared that she used to be ‘a big carb person.’
‘I was Doritos, chips, onion dip. Now, it makes me nauseous. I absolutely don’t eat that anymore.’
She and her boyfriend also work out three to four times a week and while it can be hard to get herself moving, she said, ‘It’s starting to feel good to me.’
Ozempic was designed and approved to treat type 2 diabetes but has been prescribed off-label for obesity for years. Mounjaro was approved to do the same but was similarly prescribed to spur weight loss.
Much loved by celebrities, the drugs hit protracted shortages until just last autumn because people who would not necessarily benefit medically were snapping up supplies as soon as they became available.
Mounjaro contains the active ingredient tirzepatide that mimics hormones in the brain responsible for regulating appetite and feelings of fullness.
To many body positivity influencers, the drugs’ meteoric rise in popularity reversed a slow, years-long societal shift toward body acceptance. It also sparked anger toward celebrities for what many saw as jumping on the thinness bandwagon.
Ms Catania said: ‘I kind of think I broke the seal on being honest about it.’
She was also quick to tell people that, rather than taking the medicine for vanity reasons, she had a medical need for it: ‘I’m going through menopause, I have a thyroid issue, I have inflammation and weight is hard to take off.
‘And I work out, and I don’t eat crazy, and I was gaining weight, and it’s a lot of different layers.’
Doctors often warn people that these medications are highly effective tools for weight management, but they are not a magic bullet for obesity.
Dr Amy Lee, chief medical officer at Lindora Clinic, a weight management company in Southern California, said: ‘You will acquire the symptoms of hunger and cravings that you had before starting the medication. Your body will return to the “baseline.”’
A 2023 study tracked 670 people taking tirzepatide for 36 weeks. People lost an average of 20 percent of their body weight in that time.
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Afterward, half of the participants continued taking a high dose of tirzepatide for another year, while the other half received a placebo injection. Both groups also received lifestyle counseling, focusing on reduced calorie intake and regular exercise.
The group that continued tirzepatide lost an additional 5.5 percent of their body weight on average, while those who switched to the placebo regained 14 percent of their weight.
The placebo group also showed increased cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure levels compared to when they were on tirzepatide, according to Dr. Louis Aronne, the study’s lead author and director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill Cornell Medicine.
