The rise of 'Ozempic lips': How drastic weight loss combined with fillers makes plumped-up pouts look even more pronounced
- Dr Nina Bal explained how the loss of fat can make lip fillers more pronounced
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A plump pout has become a red carpet non-negotiable for countless Hollywood stars in recent years - on par with a designer dress or towering high heels.
But what happens when you add Ozempic into the mix? Look no further than celebrities such as Sharon Osbourne and Caroline Stanbury, who have admitted to using the weight loss jab and have even plumper lips as a result.
Despite first being approved as a diabetes treatment in 2017, the drug is now widely being used for weight loss - as it mimics the the actions of GLP-1, a hormone in the brain that regulates appetite and feelings of satiety.
Although it has helped millions around the world achieve their weight loss goals, the 'skinny shot' can also famously make users look extremely gaunt over time - a phenomenon critics have unflatteringly labelled 'Ozempic face'.
The tell-tell signs of condition include drooping around the cheeks, sunken eyes and an increased number of wrinkles - but for people who already have injectable fillers, it can also make certain areas of their face, including their lips, look artificially plump.
Drastic weight loss without the use of slimming drugs can also create the same effect, as evidenced by Jessica Simpson who has pillowy lips and looks more slender than ever, but insists that her slim shape is down to willpower and not jabs.
Pictured: Sharon Osbourne walking the red carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of The Bikeriders in June
Pictured: Sharon Osbourne as a judge on The X Factor in 2007. The mother-of-three has previously said she lost 'too much' weight while on Ozempic
Christina Aguilera (pictured) is rumoured to be mixing Ozempic and fillers to maintain her youthful appearance
Speaking to FEMAIL, aesthetician Kayti Brooks said that 'Ozempic face' makes lip fillers look more pronounced.
The expert - who runs Grey Door Aesthetics in Hove - said: 'Losing weight at the phenomenal rate Ozempic allows will lose the fat all over the body including the face - but overfilled lips will not shrink.
'Any filler won’t have the support structure of the skin. The filler will stay and the lips stay big or bigger! With the skin laxity disappearing the client may feel the need to plump up with filler.
'This is hugely ageing and so obvious what procedures have been carried out.'
As a way around this, Kayti recommended 'skin boosters and polynucleotides to target the skins laxity and promote collagen and elastin production giving a much more “youthful” and fresher appearance to the skin'.
This summer, Sharon Osbourne, who has been open about her use of fillers and Botox in the past, walked the red carpet for the LA premiere of The Bikeriders - where she was pictured with a very full pout.
In January, former music manager told the Mail that she 'lost too much weight' on Ozempic and has now sworn off ever having fillers again.
She said: 'I’ve had enough. I’ve given up on all interventions. I couldn’t have much more facial surgery — there’s not that much skin left to stretch, pull or cut. And I won’t have any more fillers or Botox.'
Meanwhile, Christina Aguilera is another star who is rumoured to be mixing Ozempic and fillers to maintain her youthful appearance.
Left: Christina Aguilera at the 10th Annual Disney's American Teacher Awards at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood in 1999. Right: Christina Aguilera in West Hollywood last month. Fans have speculated the star is on Ozempic - although she has never addressed the rumours
Cosmetic doctors consequently weighed in, suggesting the singer's new look was likely a result of a 'miracle' weight loss jab, as well as facial surgeries.
London-based aesthetics doctor Dr Jonny Betteridge said he suspects the mother-of-two undergone a face lift, eyelid surgery and extensive dental work.
'The change in weight in such a short period of time could be attributed to Ozempic use and I also think she would have dissolved all the filler in her face before then undergoing some surgical treatments,' he said.
'She has more proportionate lips both in relation to the upper and lower lip so we can attribute this to filler and also the dental work as well, with veneers.'
Although Christina has not commented on the Ozempic rumours, she did previously tell Allure that she has incobotulinumtoxinA - which is also used to treat muscle spasms - injected into her frownlines.
In recent months, fans have also speculated that singer Kim Petras is on Ozempic and dabbled with lip filler - having debuted a noticeably fuller pout this summer.
Pictured right: German singer-songwriter Kim Petras at the Balenciaga SS25 fashion show in Paris last month. Fans have speculated the star is on Ozempic and having lip filler. Left: At the Grammy Awards in February 2023.
Tori Spelling, 50, admitted she used diabetes drugs to shed baby weight after giving birth to her youngest kid in 2017 (pictured left). Tori at The Hollywood Show, Burbank, earlier this month (right)
The German songwriter sparked speculation she had used Ozempic after debuting a new look this summer.
Fans described the Unholy singer, 32, as 'unrecognizable' and suggested she may have tried a weight loss drug.
Dr Rubinstein agreed, telling this outlet: 'This is a pretty clear body change that happened over a year, and I think it is not unlikely that Kim used Ozempic or some similar weight-loss drug.
'She has really thinned out, her thighs even look slimmer from one picture to the other — and that is very hard to achieve. To get your extremities looking thinner, that is a significant amount of weight loss.
'At 32, your metabolism is still very much kicking — so if you use these medications, then your body is really primed for weight loss, and you can get results like this.'
In April this year, Kim canceled all of her summer festival performance dates citing 'health issues', but didn't specify the cause.
Dr Rubinstein said they may be linked to weight loss drugs, if she had taken them, saying: 'These drugs can cause nausea, and sometimes can have longer lasting effects on the speed at which food moves through your tummy — making it harder to eat, so you can have some cramping.
'There have been reports of pancreatitis too, which is difficult to go through and requires a rest to your diet, to your body. It is a painful condition, so the idea of getting up on stage or even in a crowd is not a great one — especially when you are in that kind of pain.' Kim has not commented publicly on suggestions she may have taken Ozempic.
What's more, former 90210 actress Tori Spelling has also admitted to using Ozempic to try to lose her baby weight.
Speaking on her misSPELLING podcast in April, she said: 'I tried Ozempic and it didn't work for me.'
Earlier this month, the star was pictured with a very plump pout while greeting fans at the Hollywood Show in Burbank - sparking rumours she has had fillers or on a weight loss drug.
Speaking to FEMAIL, Dr Nina Bal - an advanced facial aesthetics clinician and cosmetic dental surgeon - said: 'It is mainly an issue of lack of proportion and balance if someone has a loss of volume in the face and excess or important volume in the lips.
'It can look unnatural and disproportionate with the harmony of the rest of the face if too much is injected in someone who doesn't have much facial fat or at all.
'Patients on Ozempic can still have lip fillers but it has to be done in small amount , respecting the shape and anatomy of the lips, with a soft hyaluronic acid filler that won’t give too much projection.'
Pictured: Jessica Simpson after the birth of her daughter (left). She has since said she lost 100lbs without any weight loss drugs (right)
Pictured: The Real Houswives of Dubai star Caroline Stanbury - who has previously admitted o using Ozempic to lose weight
In July 2023, Jessica Simpson denied taking Ozempic to lose weight - insisting that she lost 100lbs on her own.
But over the years, she has admitted to experimenting with lip fillers - and has been sporting a noticeably fuller pout of late.
Dr Babak Ashafi says Jessica is an example of what extreme weight loss can do to people's faces.
The expert, who is signed with ZAVA Online Doctors, said: 'When patients lose weight quickly, they tend to lose volume in their cheeks and under the eyes. This can create a very gaunt look, particularly in those over the age of say 40, when your skin doesn’t have as much collagen and begins to lose its natural elasticity.
'The irony is that in contrast to these sunken features, plumped lips from fillers can look more pronounced, leading to an unbalanced appearance where the lips look overly prominent against a slimmer face. '
As a result, Dr Dimitri Vichas added: 'In most cases, I advise the individual to come as close as to their ideal weight before we consider fillers so that we know what we are dealing with from the start and work on a blank canvas.'
What's more, The Real Housewives of Dubai star Caroline Stanbury has been open about her Ozempic use and the toll it took on her face.
Speaking on her podcast Uncut and Uncensored, the reality star issued a warning to listeners about continually having fillers - after she had to have corrective facial surgery.
Caroline said: 'Over the years it has been filler on top of filler on top of filler. Half of my surgery was removing all of the filler I had and he took three and a half inches off my neck.'
She previously said of her weight loss drug use: 'After 40, we all know, it’s very, very hard to lose weight.
'But I met so many 40-year-old women going, "How have you done it?’ And I don’t want to lie to you … I used Ozempic, which I think is one of the best tools if you’re able to use it.
'What did Kate Moss say? "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels." There’s something to be said for that.'
Ozempic contains semaglutide, which is not a targeted drug and as such does not just cause fat loss around the stomach and thighs, but the entire body, including the face.
Dr Smita Ramanadham, a plastic surgeon in New Jersey, recently told DailyMail.com: 'Ozempic face is essentially the same characteristics that we see when patients have rapid or regular weight loss.
'We see a loss of volume in the face, and when we lose fat in the face we see signs like the cheeks are more sunken in, more sagging skin and a general hollowing out of the features.
'Sometimes, it can have the effect of actually making a person look older — because the fat in our cheeks is what gives us a more youthful look.'
