Like millions of others, I love watching Strictly Come Dancing on a Saturday night. Seeing the celebrities being transformed from hopeless movers with two left feet to polished performers gliding across the dance floor makes fantastic TV. So I’m looking forward to seeing it return in a few weeks.
But my heart sank a little the other day when I read the news that many taking part were reportedly taking weight-loss injections. It left me thinking, is there anyone, anywhere, who isn’t currently on these jabs!?
This issue is one I am really passionate about. My own daughter’s battle with an eating disorder led to me becoming a counsellor, and I’ve helped support hundreds of people over the last 20 years with their own battles, writing books on the subject too.
And I am really concerned about the rising number of people now turning to these jabs. Forty years ago, when I was in my early 20s, health clubs and gyms were popping up all over the country.
'Jabs like Ozempic are now being presented as a magic bullet'
|GETTY
If you committed to the exercise regime, ate less and slept well, then, with time, you would lose weight and build the body you would be happy with. Nothing should have changed, but so much has.
In fact, fast forward 40 years, and we have found ourselves locked in a fast technology-fuelled pressured society, where jabs like Ozempic are now being presented as a magic bullet.
OK, yes, for some, they can be a huge benefit. Studies have shown they can be hugely successful in treating type 2 diabetes. And for others who urgently need to lose weight on health grounds, they can and do offer a solution.
But these jabs are now becoming more and more mainstream, and using them is now the norm rather than the exception.
Through my work, I am in contact with a lot of people using the jabs, and the side effects some are experiencing are very concerning.
Many report to me how they often feel sick, as well as actually being sick, or having diarrhoea, stomach cramps and constipation.
For some, it is temporary, but for others I am in contact with, they are persistent and can be debilitating. One person I recently spoke to at a dinner party, who was happy for me to share her views, told me: “I now plan my work around not going into the office on a Tuesday as that's the day I have my injection.
“It leaves me feeling totally wiped and nauseous. For the next two days. I have lost about a stone on it so far, but I am now wondering if it is all worth it and I should continue?"
Her comments were echoed by another at the same event, who told me: “Three weeks after starting, I began suffering with anxiety, I’ve never had before. ‘I couldn’t keep still, my heart was racing, and I felt agitated. I did not take the 4th one - and will not consider it again.’"
Then there’s the biggest issue of all, which is how people cope when they come off the jabs.
One person I am supporting, a busy working mum in her 50s, who was also happy for me to recount her story, sums up the experiences many suffer.
“The jabs were great for me,” she explained. “But due to the rising costs of the medication, I felt I could not justify the monthly outgoings anymore.
“I stopped two months ago, and I have tried to keep the weight off, but it is slowly creeping back on. It makes me wish I had done it the proper way in the beginning, as it is now making me feel quite depressed.”
Having personally and professionally been around eating disorders for the last 20 years, I am very concerned there is not enough research into the effect this medication can and will have on those who may already be struggling with an eating disorder, poor body image and low self-esteem.
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Lynn became a councillor after her daughter's battle with an eating disorder
|LYNN CRILLY
I fear there is a risk the jabs could add to the torment many will be feeling.
I also worry the jabs will ultimately be used as a cop-out by governments to avoid making hard policy choices, which will actually prevent obesity.
Like learning to dance, losing weight can and does take time and is hard work.
Whether you are appearing on Strictly or just Joe Bloggs, the quick-fix of a jab might seem like an appealing option. But, in the long term, I fear we are waltzing into disaster.
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