Sunken eyes to bulldog-like features: the scary things skinny jabs do to your face and the celebs who might be victims
SINCE diabetes drugs burst onto the scene in 2022 as weight-loss tools, more and more Brits have been turning to the needle to slim down.
Celebs pioneered the movement with Sharon Osbourne losing 42 pounds using Ozempic, Kelly Clarkson using skinny jabs to get trim and even Boris Johnson giving them a go to lose five pounds a week.
Lottie Moss was rushed to hospital after suffering a skinny jab-induced seizure, and the Kardashian-Jenner clan are unable to shake rumours that their famously large behinds were shrunk this way.
Anti-obesity and diabetes drugs, which are administered via regular injections, have quickly gone from being niche medicines prescribed by doctors to weight loss cheat codes that you can pick up online for as little as £72 a month.
Versions of the drug include the infamous Ozempic, as well as Wegovy and Mounjaro.
They contain semaglutide, an ingredient that promotes weight loss by mimicking the actions of GLP-1, a hormone released in the gut after eating, which helps you feel full and satisfied.
But skinny jabs carry a price and could cost you your face.
The unwanted aesthetic effects of weight loss injections have even earnt their own name of “Ozempic face”.
This phenomenon is characterised by sagging skin (which have been compared to a bulldog’s chops), hollow under eyes, a distorted pout and more.
We don’t know the long-term health or physical consequences of skinny jabs because they’ve not been in circulation for long enough.
Fabulous spoke to plastic surgeon Naveen Cavale from Real Plastic Surgery about all the dangerous things that skinny jabs like Ozempic are doing to faces – and the celebs falling victim to it.
“Ozempic-induced weight loss can reduce fat in the face,” Naveen explains.
“This might result in a thinner or less voluminous appearance, often described as ‘Ozempic face’.”
Fish Lips
Step aside ‘trout pout’, the new undesirable kisser is ‘fish lips’ caused by skinny jabs.
“Some people may notice their lips look less plump because of fat loss,” Naveen says.
“However, significant fat loss in the face may make those who have pre-existing lip fillers appear more prominent, as the surrounding soft tissue diminishes.
“This exaggerated look, sometimes called ‘fish lips’ on social media, is not due to the medication itself, but rather to the interaction between weight loss and filler placement.”
THE FULL LIST OF CELEBRITIES WHO HAVE ADMITTED TO TAKING OZEMPIC
As weight-loss drugs gained popularity this year, the public has speculated about which celebrities are using Ozempic.
Here are the celebrities who’ve admitted to taking the drug:
- Lottie Moss
- Kelly Clarkson
- Tracy Morgan
- Stephen Fry
- Boris Johnson
- Jeremy Clarkson
- Rebel Wilson
- Amy Schumer
- Oprah Winfrey
- Elon Musk
- Sharon Osbourne
- Robbie Williams
- Remi Bader
- Heather Gay
- Chelsea Handler
- Claudia Oshry
- Patti Stanger
- Emily Simpson
- Dolores Catania
- Lauren Manzo
- Golnesa ‘GG’ Gharachedaghi
- Charles Barkley
- Billie Jean King
Noughties singer Jessica Simpson is one celebrity that fans believe has fallen victim to the ‘fish lips’ phenomenon.
While the 44-year-old (who lost 100lb between 2019 and 2020) denied taking Ozempic in an interview with Bustle in 2023, rumours have continued swirling about her weight loss methods on social media in 2024.
And she’s slimmed down everywhere but her lips, leaving many fans asking under her Instagram posts: “What’s wrong with your lips?”
“If this occurs, adjustments like dissolving or refining fillers can restore balance,” Naveen recommends.
Naveen clarified that ‘fish lips’ can happen without the use of skinny jabs and can simply be a result of weight loss, as could be the case with Jessica.
Sunken Eyes
Another unwelcome side effect of skinny jabs is hollow-looking under-eyes.
“Ozempic can cause hollow or sunken under-eyes,” Naveen explains.
“This is due to the reduction of facial fat, including the delicate fat pads beneath the eyes.
“These fat pads provide volume and cushion the area, giving a smooth and youthful appearance.
“When facial fat diminishes with rapid weight loss, the skin in the under-eye area can appear more sunken, leading to a hollow or tired look.
“Additionally, thinner skin in this area may make blood vessels and pigmentation more visible.”
Sharon Osbourne, 72, has been touted in the media as an example of Ozempic face for the last two years, after she revealed she lost 42 pounds through the drug.
The music manager has been open about her five facelifts over the years – including one that was botched – but her recent weight loss transformation has sparked huge intrigue about her “new face”.
Fans on X have expressed particular concern about her “dead stare eyes”, with one lamenting that Ozempic usage has given her the appearance of them “sinking” into Sharon’s face.
Saggy Neck
Even your neck isn’t safe from skinny jabs like Ozempic.
“Rapid weight loss can potentially lead to looser skin and accentuate neck bands and wrinkles,” Naveen says.
“This happens because the skin may not fully retract after fat loss, revealing laxity in the area.”
Just like her famous daughters, 69-year-old Kris Jenner has struggled to shake skinny jab rumours, with one nutritionist noting her recent weight loss has caused “significant muscle loss” around her neck.
And then the mum-of-six “used filler to offset the possible volume loss experienced by her rapid weight loss”, Rania Batayneh predicted.
Social media sleuths agree with the theory, too.
Some have branded Kris an “Ozempic queen” and questioned why her neck is so heavily filtered in pictures.
“No lines in her neck?” one probed last month. “Please, no one looks like that.”
“The neck don’t lie,” another critic quipped.
Kris hasn’t addressed rumours that she uses weight loss jabs, but she did admit to getting a facelift in 2011.
Bulldog Cheeks
There’s been countless studies into the phenomenon of owners and dogs looking alike.
But the last thing you want is to start looking like a bulldog… especially if you don’t have one as a pet.
Unfortunately, this could be a nasty side effect from skinny jabs that is virtually impossible to reverse without going under the knife.
“Rapid weight loss from medications like Ozempic can lead to facial fat loss, particularly in the midface, resulting in a hollow or sagging appearance in the cheeks and jowl area,” Naveen explains.
“This has been referenced as ‘bulldog cheeks’ on social media and it occurs because reduced facial volume can accentuate skin laxity and gravitational pull.
“While the term is colloquial, the underlying issue is structural changes caused by the loss of fat that previously supported the face.”