Former professional tennis player Serena Williams was recently criticized quite harshly on social media for promoting the weight-loss drug Ozempic (I assume because it was implied she was injecting herself in the ad) or Rybelsusin, the oral medication, in a commercial that played during the Super Bowl. Good. The strong reaction was appropriate. It's nice to see at least some people are against promoting hardcore weight-loss drugs with very limited long-term testing to the general public. Not long ago, I jotted down some observations in a blog post about Oprah doing the same thing. Neither celebrity is out to help others with these kinds of promotions. They're in it for themselves.
Not surprisingly, over 10 percent of Americans are currently on some kind of weight-loss drug. About 40 percent of Americans are currently classified as obese, but there's no way to tell exactly who is taking the drugs. Cost, even with insurance, is a deterrent unless you have money, money, money, so anyone purchasing them has to have anywhere from $400 to well over $1,000 a month extra on hand. Boulder, Colorado, has somehow become an anorexic and bulimic mecca in the middle of the obesity epidemic. But while there might be benefits for certain individuals to use these types of drugs, taking them is never without risk.
To clarify, the distinction I'm making is addressing the use of these drugs for weight loss, not for controlling diabetes. I could possibly see the potential use for a diet drug if a person is obese, possibly too large to exercise comfortably, and takes the drug temporarily while working on lifestyle changes. However, that's typically not how the drugs are promoted, sold, or taken. A relative of mine was prescribed something similar to Ozempic when she complained to her doctor that she had gained 15 pounds. She has always been petite, but she was able to obtain a prescription anyway, despite the potential dangers and side effects of these types of medications.
The fine print on any Ozempic advertisement states that common side effects include nausea, vomiting, stomach pains, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, and dehydration that can lead to kidney problems. Other side effects include heartburn and acid reflux, fatigue and headaches, dizziness, altered taste sensation, pancreatitis, gallbladder issues, hypoglycemia, vision changes, and possible thyroid cancer. Keep in mind that these are the listed side effects. Reported issues that are not listed include gastroparesis, gallbladder issues, intestinal blockage, physical changes, pain in the extremities, blood clots, dry mouth and dental issues, arthritis, vision changes, and increased risk of cardiovascular issues. Holy crap. And I bet that's nowhere near a complete list.
If you think big companies or the FDA give a single shit about the health of the average citizen, look into the corrupt history of the FDA or the history of just how powerful and corrupt big companies and the government can be when it comes to shoving products and lies down the throats of the hoi polloi.
Some people argue that using a weight-loss drug is cheating or taking the easy route instead of changing habits, but my issue with these types of drugs is the fact that they are always created more for profiting the rich than for people's health.
One could argue that fast food commercials are as bad as drug commercials. Maybe this is true, but fast food isn't being promoted as nutrition to be ingested daily. Commercials are showing their product without any suggestion of health, only that it supposedly tastes good. In moderation, there's nothing wrong with fast food. Diet drug commercials, on the other hand, are promoting a product that has to be used daily in order to achieve the desired results, and, based on the advertisement presented at the Super Bowl, the subtle message appears to be more about looking thinner than feeling well, even though Serena mentions moving and feeling better...while flaunting her body.
Oh, and did I mention that Serena's husband is on the board of Ro, the tele"health" platform that makes it easier for anyone to gain access to and use these drugs? Um...yeah. I'll leave it at that.
In other news, the boxer Imane Khelif was outed as having the SRY gene, confirming what rational people had seen with their own eyes but were told wasn't true. Strangely, he said he would take a test to compete in the 2008 Olympics, so I'm not sure if he means in the men's division or if he still thinks it's OK for men to punch women in the face in the name of sport. As expected, those who were adamant that Khelif was a woman and demanded apologies from anyone calling him a man are oddly silent or still calling people who tell the truth bigots.
In still other news, Nikki Hiltz, who claims to be non-binary, won the women's division of the Wanamaker Mile. This is another way of saying a woman won a woman's race. The insistence that everyone call her "they" is just ridiculous. She's a female competing in the female division.
I'm not saying these things to be mean. It's just frustrating that we are living in an age where we are told to pretend we don't see what we know to be true, and that telling the truth gets us labeled as haters or transphobic.
Lastly, the Roache husband and wife team, Megan and David, continue to humiliate themselves for likes and attention in their latest YouTube video. It's hard to even watch, and it's impossible to do so without cringing. I mention this because I stumbled upon a critique of the video that was spot on and a pleasure to read. I commented on the blog post and will say here, too, that more and more, people like David and Megan are looking like characters in a Black Mirror episode, specifically the Common People episode, only the Roaches seem to enjoy debasing themselves.
OK. That last part might be a little mean, but Jesus fucking Christ. The world is all kinds of upside down and backwards lately.
