Rob Lowe turns 60 years old in March. Lowe is an OG Brat Packer and, back then, I never would have thought that he would have the kind of career longevity he’s had. He’s currently on 9-1-1: Lone Star and he’s fashioned a pretty successful and long-running career for himself, mostly on television. Lowe recently chatted with People Mag about his upcoming birthday, his health and wellness in general. I don’t think he’s promoting anything in particular (other than the TV show, I guess), but the conversation ended up going to weight-loss drugs and diabetic drugs. Weirdly, People Mag didn’t note that Lowe is still a spokesperson for the Atkins Diet. Some highlights:
On weight loss drugs: Stressing his commitment to overall health and wellness, the actor shares his concern with people relying on weight loss drugs, referring to medications like Ozempic, an FDA-approved prescription medication for people with type 2 diabetes. It’s one of the brand names for semaglutide — also known as Wegovy — which works in the brain to impact satiety, and is the latest Hollywood weight loss trend. “I see people who are taking all the new weight loss drugs and that’s great, and it’s really changed their lives. But my concern always is, okay, now what?” Lowe tells PEOPLE. “What’s the plan for the longevity of everything? I never ever talk about diets, I talk about lifestyle.”
He has a sweet tooth but he’s trying to be healthier: “I’m trying to be even more disciplined now as I’m older just because as you get older, you need to watch what you eat even more than when you were younger. So I tried to cut sugar completely as my new year’s resolution. And now I’m figuring, okay, that’s not sustainable for me, but how do I really watch my sugar consumption?”
He’s always been into fitness: Lowe notes that he’s never struggled when it comes to having a good grasp on fitness, boasting that he feels “better than I’ve ever felt…I can’t wait to train or to do something physical. I have very good friends and family that have to be dragged into doing something physical… that would be super tough to overcome. I am blessed that I really enjoy physical exertion and adventure. So if I’m not on a set, I build my entire day around what activity I’m going to do. It might be a paddle in the ocean, a hike, running sprints on the track, pickleball, tennis. I’m pretty much up for anything. It’s a lifestyle,” Lowe tells PEOPLE, noting that his latest health goal is trying to find the balance between “longevity and consistency” and “non-injury and pushing myself as hard as I ever did.”
On one side, I agree with him that there should be conversations about what happens to longterm users of those diabetic/weight-loss drugs. Diabetics using those drugs are pretty much going to be on the drugs for a very long time, but people using them purely for weight loss have experimented with going off the drugs, to some wild-or-expected effects (like gaining weight back and then some). Again, drugs like Ozempic were and are made for diabetics and it’s been a game-changer for the treatment of diabetes, but… yeah, you’ll likely have to take it for years and years.
It does feel like Lowe is being sort of shady about Ozempic users, like he’s edging up to saying “why not just watch your diet and work out.” Lowe has so much privilege and he rarely ever sees it – the privilege of being a white man, the privilege of second, third and fourth chances in his professional life, pretty privilege and the privilege of “good genes.” He doesn’t know what it’s like to have a genetic propensity for weight gain or diabetes and his casual smugness is rubbing me the wrong way.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
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- HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA – MARCH 23: Rob Lowe arrives at the Los Angeles Premiere Of Netflix’s ‘Unstable’ Season 1 held at the Netflix Tudum Theater on March 23, 2023 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 764871046, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Rob Lowe, Credit line: Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon
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- HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA – MARCH 23: Rob Lowe arrives at the Los Angeles Premiere Of Netflix’s ‘Unstable’ Season 1 held at the Netflix Tudum Theater on March 23, 2023 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 764871107, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Rob Lowe, Credit line: Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / Avalon
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- Rob Lowe at Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2024 at the Arlington Theatre, Santa Barbara, USA, on 09 February 2024.,Image: 845239470, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: JERRY PEREZ / Avalon
Thank you, Kaiser, for pointing out Lowe’s immense privilege.
Obesity is a chronic condition. When I went on Wegovy, my doctor informed me that I’d be taking it forever. And, speaking of privilege, I was fortunate enough to have health insurance that covers it. And it’s up to me to make sure I eat in a healthy way and exercise to maintain muscle. A responsible doctor isn’t prescribing these drugs as a get-out-of-healthy-living pass.
But that’s how most people are taking them. The drug companies have created a country where everyone feels you can fix anything with a pill. Because they want to sell the pills. If a person is morbidly obese and has been for years. And they are going to die within six months to a year. Sure put them on pills or shots to get them started. But only for a year or two. Because if they go over that. They aren’t trying themselves to fix the problem. But only using the medicine for it. And guess what. I’ve fought being overweight my entire life. And am a diabetic and have a lot of other health issues that don’t have anything to do with weight. And I am constantly having to fight with doctors to let me stop taking some of the medicines they keep trying to force on me. Because for one pill you have to take two others to combat the side effects of the first one.
This is a medication to treat a chronic condition. It’s not about being overweight. This is about people battling a lifelong, debilitating condition. Like diabetes, it will be something you manage for the rest of your life. Would you tell someone with epilepsy or depression to stop taking their medication?
So in other words you are striving to make PERSONAL choices regarding your health. These drugs were literally designed to be used long term. SO the idea that people should “only use them for a year or two” doesn’t hold water medically. If you have no interest in taking them – that’s fine that is your right to make decisions about your own health and body. But that does not translate to the choices OTHER people make regarding theirs.
I would take issue with the statement “that’s how most people are taking them.” In my experience, that’s not true. That’s the impression we are getting from the coverage (and ubiquitous speculation) re: famous actors, real housewives, etc. but that is a very small subset: people who have the money and influence to get doctors to prescribe things they don’t necessarily need medically and can pay cash (a LOT of cash) for it, outside of insurance. “Most” people can’t do that.
I know three people on semaglutide for weight management, two through their primary care doctor and one through a telehealth service. One has insurance that paid for it, but the approval process to prove medical necessity was rigorous and difficult, the other is cash paying $1600 a month, but also had to qualify medically. And the third is using a less expensive (but still $400 month after a $300 introductory rate the first few months) compound pharmacy with a telehealth prescription, but while she qualified, her less overweight (and more naturally, due to aging, unlike her lifelong struggle) husband did not…and to be honest, they assumed everyone would qualify medically for the prescription.
Also, the side effects are no joke, from what I’ve observed. It’s not something everyone could do, casually, just to lose a few pounds.
I’ve changed my entire perspective on these through exposure to real people using them in real world situations to reduce the kind of weight and co-morbidities (high blood pressure, pre-diabetes, heart attack and stroke risks) they’d struggled for decades to manage and reverse. In no case, was it a lack of will or desire or understanding of the stakes.
I’m grateful I’ve never faced this particular struggle or had any issue in this area, but I won’t judge faceless strangers or assume their situation or character because of anecdotal stories about celebrities (whom, I might point out, I don’t know either).
How do you know how most people take it? Are you in the room during their doctor’s appointment?
@RobertPhillips I tend to agree with you. I don’t blame individuals, either. I see the American condition (obesity may be genetic but no, the obesity epidemic in America is not primarily genetic in origin or there would not have been a massive rise across generations) as the outcome of late stage capitalism. Commodify everything, including our health. We now purchase our physical and mental health in single dose increments that we get to consume for the rest of our lives. Why? Because us doing so makes a select few people wildly wealthy.
I mean, were I to REALLY go off here, you can see the same logic play out in rates of gun ownership in the US. This is late stage capitalism and the end result is a plague of mass shootings and a Congress handcuffed by its unwillingness to turn away NRA money.
Unfettered capitalism hollows out democracy at every turn. Never forget that the ultimate logic of capitalism is slavery and the massive effort that it took to abolish the institution in the United States. These logics are deeply, deeply embedded in our systems and we’ve been subject to a pro-corporatist attitude in Washington for decades upon decades now.
I’ve had diagnosed insulin resistance since I was 17 and finally was referred to an Endocrinologist at 47, she put me on Trulicity (switching to Ozempic because after three months I’m still having headaches and exhaustion). No significant weight loss, unfortunately, maybe the switch will help.
The imbedded article is wrong, it doesn’t satiate the brain and it’s not just for diabetics. It’s for pre-diabetics and people with insulin resistance as well, to be used as a preventative measure.
For anyone who doesn’t know, insulin resistance is basically where you have way too much insulin in your blood and it doesn’t seem to know what to do, so the glucose just hangs out in the blood and the insulin does not uptake it to cells where it’s needed. The pancreas gets messages from the brain that it needs the glucose, so the pancreas keeps pushing out insulin and the problem worsens. These drugs help reverse insulin resistance. It’s a vicious circle, insulin resistance causes weight gain but can only be fixed by weight loss. It’s also a risk factor for heart issues and worsens PCOS.
The way these drugs are treated like the devil is upsetting. If I can get my insulin and weight under control I will improve my PCOS, autoimmune conditions, heart issues (nothing huge but I’ve had abnormal ECGs), basically my whole body will run better. With all my allergies and autoimmune thyroid condition, I need my body to run as smoothly as possible. I don’t even eat chips or drink pop and I’ve cut out sugar and eaten clean for months at a time with very minimal results because of insulin resistance. Must be nice to be Rob Lowe and not have those genetic downsides, not to mention the ability to take vacations and destress… it’s not been in the cards for me for almost a decade and finding any time for myself is difficult.
I didn’t see anything in the article that Rob Lowe was attacking the drug itself… maybe he should have been more clear in what he was saying here instead of saying well just change your lifestyle.
Agreed coldbloodedjellydonut (best name ever btw). I became insulin resistant in perimenopause. I’ve lifted regularly for 3 years, added cardio to help the resistance (it has, to some extent, I at least don’t gain more weight than the cookie I ate should be, as had started to happen), eaten well throughout my life — I’ve had very few habits to unlearn in that regard, so I’m going into my experience with all the ‘what abouts’ taken care of. I was encouraged by my gyn to go on them – she couldn’t prescribe, but I heard my former gyn is now, knowing that overweight leads to other issues, not to mention that he knows that perimenopause really does affect insulin (he noted a few years back that it was clear my metabolism hit a wall). I am frustrated that the attitude is we’re all a bunch of losers looking for an easy way out. My back and hips hurt from the extra weight, BP is troublesome at times, among other things. Do I know how much or whether I’ll gain when I go off them? No, but I have everything in place to likely maintain without them, and if not I’ll seek a maintenance dose until menopause, then try again to go off them. In other words, I can’t know how my body will react, but no matter what, I’m not someone likely to be on them all the time. I feel better but I’ve been hiding this from most people close to me bc I don’t want to hear the ‘what abouts.’ I’ve DONE what I needed to do. I need more help!
Angie, as someone who has gained 50 pounds in less than one year due to peri, I am really grateful you posted all that information in the comment ❤️
This is why I still love coming to this site.
And I am on a strict diet, I do plenty of exercise, weight lifting, etc. but I haven’t been able to shed a SINGLE pound. I was about 115 pounds all my adult life and now I’m towards 180.
It’s disheartening and my joints/bones and back are aching 24/7.
How do you know if you have insulin resistance? What tests do you ask your Dr. to order? I’m starting to think I might have it, any help would be greatly appreciated!!!
@AlpineWitch I am also in perimenopause. I found I had to completely change the kind of exercise that I’ve always done. It’s been a journey. Mobility exercises (YouTube) have been crucial, highly recommend.
I’m concerned about republicans overturning Obamacare which they keep threatening to do, and then pre-existing conditions will no longer be covered by insurance.
I wish people understood this, because all of us on medications for any condition right now risk losing coverage, plus well visits wouldn’t be covered or free anymore!
Amen to everything you said about pre-existing conditions and insurance companies if Obamacare goes.
I wish a basic level of universal healthcare were there for all people and then you could buy extras on top of that. Everyone deserves to get treatment for medical conditions if they want it.
Work with your state to get that changed! For decades it’s been outlawed for insurers to exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions on the state level, but the ACA make that federal. Get active on it on the state level!
I need to start taking something as I just became diabetic but the side effects of these medications is worrisome. I don’t want to unexpectedly have a bowel issue while out in public
They’re telling me they’ll subside. I hope so bc I’m here to tell you, rough. I’ve never been a pepto girl but I am now!
“I am blessed” blechhhhh spare me
These drugs aren’t designed as a short-term solution. Many maintenance drugs are not. They are designed to help people who have a disease and that means you’re going to be on the drugs for life, potentially. What’s different here is that people like Rob Lowe don’t see obesity or insulin resistance as a disease. They see it as a lifestyle choice. This is why they don’t understand why drugs like Ozempic are designed for long-term use.
Exactly. I made all the right choices and I’m still struggling with insulin resistance. Absolutely infuriating to constantly hear the message that I’m looking for an easy way out or whatever with this MEDICATION.
100%. Perimenopause kicked in starting at 35 (I’m 43 now) and within the last two years, insulin resistance decided to rear its’ ugly little head. I thought maybe it was my ongoing issues with anemia (thanks, endometriosis) that was making me SO FREAKING TIRED. Nope. A couple of blood tests later, and I had a prescription for Ozempic. I’m literally on the lowest dose available (.5 mg, self-injected once a week). Other than the initial round of GI surprises the first week, I have actually felt a sense of “normalcy” in the last several weeks. I’m not exhausted all the time, my sleep pattern has regulated, and the doughy weight that kept hanging around my lower abdomen (making me look/feel perpetually bloated) has finally started to go away. I’ve also noticed that IF I crave sweets, it has been fruit. Apples, bananas, grapes…can’t get enough. I wasn’t much of a junk food eater before, so the weight gain was really jarring.
I’m just really glad that I talked through options with my GP, my gyno AND a nutritionist to come up with a multi-disciplinary angle of attack for this. I don’t want to do HRT once menopause starts, and they are all in agreement that if I get my weight under control and use a maintenance dose of Ozempic (or any semaglutide) for the rest of my life, I won’t have to go the HRT route. I saw what it did to both of my grandmothers and I don’t want any part of it. One of the nurses asked me if I was prepared to take this medication for the rest of my life, and I told her that I look at it like my Lexapro and my RA meds. If it means I will have a better quality of life, then damn skippy I’ll do it.
Yea Delphi exactly! I suspect menopause may adjust my body but for right now I’m in a sh*t show situation re insulin resistance. But if not, aren’t I better off using them forever? Yes!
Rob Lowe wasn’t asked about obesity or diabetes. He was asked about weight loss drugs, and as mentioned in the article, the ‘Hollywood trend of weight loss drugs’. He adds that he’s seen the life changing benefits for some people.
Insert massive eyeroll. First off – he’s a MAN. And man generally lose weight more easily than women. That’s just a biological fact. Also he is a RICH man. Which means he has access to trainers, nutritionists, etc. Additionally, these weight loss drugs were created to help those with comorbidities that prevent them from losing and maintaining a health weight. They are not short-term solutions. Some people will have to be on the drugs for the rest of their lives. Obesity is a life long struggle for a lot of people. Especially when it’s tied to things like diabetes, etc.
Having a rich white dude wax on and on about how committed he is to his health and fitness (it’s very GET ON MY LEVEL energy) to be obnoxious at BEST . Especially when I look at him and can see how much botox my dude is using on a regular basis.
And everything you are complaining about. None of it is what this problem is about. The problem right now is wealthy people taking these drugs to lose ten or twenty pounds. When they aren’t really overweight in the first place. People with actual health issues aren’t able to get the drugs because the wealthy are taking them because it’s the current fad. And now those same wealthy people are complaining because when they go off of those medicines they are gaining the weight back. Because they don’t exercise or eat differently. That is what is the problem right now. But sure get on your high horse and complain because Rob’s a rich white guy.
Relax, Bob.
The majority of the people taking ozempic are NOT rich and famous. They are regular folks being prescribed a medication that is life saving. So saying that isn’t what the problem is about is frankly ridiculous and inaccurate. That’s EXACTLY what it’s about. As for my comments about Rob being a rich white guy: please feel free to defend him. We all know rich white males are oppressed and need to be defended from comments on gossip sites. I said what I said. And that’s that.
If you think about the context, i.e. where Rob Lowe lives and works, I think he IS referring to those people who take drugs to lose 20 pounds and not the people who actually medically need it. And a lot of those people can also afford trainers, nutritionists, et cetera but simply want a quick fix. But sure, any excuse for you to reflexively flex your outrage.
@ambel – except in context he didn’t actually differentiate. He didn’t say anything about people taking it for vanity reasons in Hollywood. He made a generalized statement.
I’m curious how people would take this drug to lose “10 – 20 pounds,” as is so often thrown around. It seems remarkably inefficient and uncomfortable way to do that.
I am not on the drug, but I know three people taking semaglutide (what’s in Ozempic/WeGovy) right now and they all had to go 4 weeks at the lowest dose, basically doubling every four weeks, until they got to the maintenance/weight loss dose. They lost 8-12 lbs over that first 12 weeks, but really started losing 1-2 lbs consistently once they reached the maintenance dose, though they have been warned they’ll plateau at some point.
My understanding is that you have to do this 12-week, VERY slow, ramp up so your body can adjust to the medication…and any of the rare-but-serious side effects can be caught early…and that any attempt to rush it and take larger doses can and will result in the worst experience of the side effects for most, right off the bat, including potential risk for harm or damage (esp. in people for whom those adverse effects would have been otherwise caught during the ramp up period).
Why would anyone spend $400-1600 cash every month for three months just to lose 10 pounds? Or, assuming they had a shady doctor whose willing to violate the ramp up protocol and give them a high dose right away, who would be willing spend $400-1600 a month to suffer near crippling side effects all at once, and potential internal, permanent damage, just to lose 10 – 20 lbs over 1-2 months?
For $400-1600 a month, there are so, so many other, easier and better ways to lose and keep off 10-20 lbs.
I keep hearing speculation about all of these celebrities abusing the drug “just to lose 10-20 pounds” and it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. Are there some? Sure. People with ED harm themselves all the time to lose weight, sadly, and people under industry pressure absolutely can fall prey to those instincts, BUT the idea that “all” of these people are using something so expensive and so uncomfortable and that works…but over weeks and months, not for a vacation or wedding next month…rings false.
If people were using a super low dose just to curb their appetite and STAY thin (maybe losing 10-15 pounds over 3-6 months) I suppose that might make more sense, but that’s not nearly as risky or offensive, even in principle, as those decrying the “trend” are.
I suspect the real “fun” is in some getting to openly speculate about celebrities, especially women, ignoring any actual medical reasons and co-morbidities they might have that create a need for a long-term medication, all so we can tear them down for being superficial and selfish. But I hate that. I hate the body shaming inherent in it, and I think folks like Lowe could dial it back a bit, given he is not taking it, has never had these struggles, and is a paid spokesperson for a different weight loss program!
My husband has diabetes. We found out when he went into diabetic coma at work. I eat clean 98% of the time for my health – pescavegan. He eats the SAD and it was killing him. 4 metformin a day blood sugars at 289 most days. Prescribed Ozembic a year and a half ago. He has lost 0 weight. IDK what it is but I try to tell him he needs to divorce Jimmy Dean. LOL, he will likely be prescribed it for life. Screw skinny hollywood folks taking meds that are needed for legitimate diagnosed illness. I support those morbidly obese accessing a medication that will prolong their lives.
I suspect some of this was taken out of context AND that Rob Lowe has seen the worst of the worst examples of people in Hollywood AND that the editing of the article resulted in conflating things a bit.
I listen to Rob’s podcast and have heard him speak a fair amount on the subject of his fitness, sobriety, etc. He’s passionate about it and threw himself into it when he got sober. He’s had a hard time maintaining his weight since he got older, so he’s had to work at it a lot. It’s one of the reasons he got into Atkins. Recently, he’s realized sugar is a big issue for him (as it is for many addicts/alcoholics) and he’s been trying to work on that. His episode with Oprah and the author of her book “What happened to you” is really interesting and has some insight on that.
Overall, I think he’s someone who is pretty (pun intended) aware of his privilege and that he’s made mistakes and tries to do better. He was a HUGE partier and got sober and has maintained that for over 30 years. He’s an example of someone who really changed and stuck with it. It kind of colors his whole perspective of how he sees life, if you listen to him-how am I going to maintain this, how am I going to be consistent and in it for the long run? He can even be oblivious about it, in the episode with his wife taking about marriage he’s getting judgmental about his parents and people that couldn’t be consistent and stay in their marriages for the long run and his wife pointed out his judgement and explained that maybe this is the way for them, but someone else it’s not, and that’s ok too. He was like “you know what thanks I was wrong about this, and also that’s why she’s a good partner for me people”. He listened and was open. I respect that and I respect the changes that he’s made and I respect that he’s out there trying to be a better person and a good husband and parent and has been open to the fact that he’s wrong, and tries to share information about health and wellness and positive lifestyles that may work for people, and is open about his sobriety and what he’s found works there, in case someone else will benefit. Is he perfect? No, but none of us are. He can come off like a bro, but if you really listen to him, there’s a lot more to him and he’s FAR from the worst.
These drugs are unfortunately not without side effects and may possibly cause kidney failure, blocked intestines and colon perforation, or pancreatic cancer. A lot of people with BDD seem to be using them for all the wrong reasons, and also to be taking them away from those who really need to take them and have no other option than to take the risk of suffering their side effects too.
They also have protective effects — particularly with regard to the heart.
All medications have side effects. I’m a little weary of people assuming that those prescribing the drugs, and those taking the drugs, aren’t aware of this.
Taking prescription drugs for chronic diseases is a constant balancing act of risk. Most of us know that.
All medications have side effects. People taking a medication for the long term are aware of this and understand that the benefits often outweigh the risks. It’s a gamble people have to take but the same can be said about literally any drug. Ozempic is no different.
What are the WRONG reason to use a weight loss drug? I’m on zepbound which is prescribed for weight loss. Who are to tell me it’s wrong. Stay in your lane.
For me is problematic: this is a drug that is supposed to help people who suffer from a real medical condition, but now it has become famous to “help lose weight easily” for the people who don’t have any medical need and use this only out vanity. And that’s can be dangerous because there is no reason for a healthy person to take an unnecessary medication.
“He doesn’t know what it’s like to have a genetic propensity for weight gain or diabetes and his casual smugness is rubbing me the wrong way.”
Same, Kaiser. Same.
I don’t mind Rob Lowe. His autobiography “Stories I Only Tell my Friends” was a delightful read.
I’m not even sure if he’s anti-Ozempic based on this, but my problem with a lot of criticism of these types of drugs is that we live in a society that hates fatness & also apparently hates that a drug could address it. Like the only acceptable option is for people to be shamed into suffering to lose weight (or not–cue more shame). It’s pathological.
He’s raging Republican who is pro-Trump.
Fair enough. I mean, I don’t want to have lunch with the guy but my outrage meter is already maxed out at the moment.
@Lizzie Bathory – mine as well. I can’t stand the guy and he keeps giving more reasons to dislike him.
Didn’t he struggle with cocaine back in the day?
Nobody ever says to someone with heart disease, “So when are you going to go off your statins, blood pressure medications, and direutics. You should just eat better, exercise and drink more water. Your arteries will improve if your work at it.”
About 70% of someone’s weight is based on genetics.
I’ve just started saxenda and will be going on wegovy when we finally get it in Canada. I’m trying to get healthy and prevent diabetes. This isn’t a easy decision with instant results. I’m also paying out of pocket entirely for this. I’m very tired of people making obesity a moral issue, instead of the medical one that it is.
@elaine – I am sending you all the positive thoughts as you continue your health journey!
I think A lot of people get mad that there is “an easy way out” in their opinion by taking these drugs because they’ve enjoyed a certain societal status for their thinness. We put such an emphasis on thin in society that people who naturally are or who are able to achieve that with diet and exercise want to gatekeep it from others – and I think Many of them don’t even clock their thinking around that.
I wish we didn’t tie such a weird moral stance to other people’s health and wellness. Keep doing what you need to do!!
@crowhood- Exactly this. I think this is the attitude a lot of thin people have and don’t even realize why, like you said.
Elaine, that’s a very good point about maintenance meds for other medical conditions. Arthritis, glaucoma, hyper/hypothyroidism, etc etc no one ever asks “what’s the plan for when you stop taking those meds?” or make moral judgments about them not somehow being able to cure themselves or prevent disease progression, complications without medication.
It’s clear he and others have no clue about obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes and the myriad of factors including genetics, comorbidities, hormones and yes life (trauma, chronic stress, lack of access to ALL the stuff he’s got at his fingertips, lifestyle) that play into weight, glucose metabolism etc etc.
Just as insulin and other meds are used to keep blood sugar in range and prevent devastating life limiting complications (blindness, kidney disease, CVD, stroke, amputations, infections, etc etc), these new meds are used to help manage blood sugar, even further reduce risk of all that stuff PLUS the accompanying weight loss can reduce risk of orthopedic problems, disability and stigma, discrimination (including when seeking medical care) which goes along with obesity in our society.
Any doctor prescribing them should know about the possible downsides, be monitoring patients for signs of issues (through blood work, follow-up, etc)
Aside from his smug privilege blindness, I wonder, does he have a plan for long term when he goes off Atkins products? Or is using those products for life more okay somehow than using prescribed meds?
His comments are ignorant and disgusting. In addition to the excellent points made by the other commenters, I would like to add that this man is not a medical doctor or a registered dietician. No celebrity should be offering opinions on medical matters.
I’m not sure what the issue is with anything that he’s saying. He says it’s great that folks who have used these drugs for weight loss have been able to change their lives. And asking “what next?” is totally practical, and I hope that anyone taking these has had that conversation with their doctor: do I have to take this forever? what will happen if I stop taking it? what changes might I have to make to sustain this weight loss if I go off the drug?
And then he talks about moderation for himself in exercise and eating. Which are great ways to approach both. Sure he has the money to help with that, but those are reasonable lifestyle strategies regardless.
The issue is his assumption that those convos AREN’T taking place. And also his obvious lack of understanding of what these drugs are and what they do.
Whether it’s medication, diet, fitness/exercise or a combination of all three, having a long term plan should be the goal for each person. As for his privilege of wealth, there are a lot of rich people who don’t take care of themselves. Living and eating healthy is something I aspire to on a daily basis. Would money make it easier? Sure but I’d still have to put in the work.
POMSKI, what if you put in the effort, living and eating healthy, but it wasn’t enough (or even close to enough) to prevent or manage your weight, disease risk factors or existing health issues in a way that you, your health care providers see as necessary for you to BE healthy, prevent serious problems that put your ability to function or continuing to live at high risk?
Wouldn’t medication, even LT maintenance meds be one of the possible elements of the LT plan you and your healthcare team put in place?
North of Beantown. I’m not opposed to medications and said in my comment that whatever one does – including medication – should be realistically sustainable. I know I won’t be about to bike 20 miles at the same rate as I get older so I’m incorporating other activities into my routine that I can hopefully do for however long I have left. I also take medication now that I didn’t need when I was 30 because of aging. Again, I’m a proponent of medications and vaccines, and also long walks and green tea. I’m also strongly against smoking, processed food, high fructose, etc. We all make choices but the disconnect is between choices and opportunities, not choices and awareness.
Kristen 100000000%
I think he misses the point that the “what’s next” may still mean taking the medication, possibly forever. I mean if someone started taking Prozac or another SSRI or other med for debilitating depression, would you ask the same thing? Or a statin for high cholesterol? Sometimes people can do everything “right” but their body needs the meds to stay regulated. It’s just not that simple.
I’m French but live in the UK where my NHS GP agreed to put me been Ozempic [it’s free here!] for diabetes about 2 years ago after I read an article in the New York Times about it. He made it clear that for us diabetics, it’s for life. There was a shortage of a couple of months last year when my blood sugar levels skyrocketed again as did my weight.
And my understanding was that much of the shortage for those who actually NEED the medication, was due, in part, to people who are not pre diabetic or diabetic but who use it for weight loss…there were some articles floating around a year or so ago… not sure how true that is.
Hm. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, perhaps he is throwing shade at those who are already thin/have a healthy weight for mere mortals but want to go further, rather than anyone on these drugs? That’s how I read it.
I agree with the other comments on weight loss being more difficult for us women than men, etc, and it’s always grating having a man talk about an issue that effects women more (in this case, the pressure of being seen as thin/healthy), but with these specific drugs I feel that a) the priority should be the primary purpose of these drugs which is helping people with life changing and debilitating conditions, not those wanting to shift the last few pounds just for aesthetics.
And b) yes, what are the long-term effects of taking these drugs for weight loss? We already know that yo-yo dieting is unhealthy, and some injections cannot be considered the first option without changing lifestyle, I.e. diet and exercise regimen. Essentially, everyone on it who doesn’t have diabetes is a lab rat in some out of control clinical trial. Lastly, c) access to these drugs for, let’s face it, vanity, is rich people privilege. But this may also be a blessing in disguise because us poor sods can’t ruin our bodies long term, we just get to watch the rich do it.
I agree that I think he might be referencing people who don’t “need” to take the drugs, which are people in his life, i.e. other rich people who have all of the resources available to them to be as thin as they want to be. I recall Chelsea Handler discussing something about how she didn’t know she was on Ozempic and she didn’t understand the side effects. It’s people like that should question why they’re taking this stuff.
I don’t really have an issue with this class of drugs, but I do think about prior weight-loss drugs like fen-phen that were touted as being safe and turned out not to be. I think a lot of the replies here are people feeling ‘called out.’ I mean, I don’t think the guy said anything super controversial, and I am no Rob Lowe fan. I think there is a subset of doctors and people who treat these drugs too casually and are looking for a quick fix or to attain standards that aren’t realistic for human bodies. This doesn’t mean there aren’t people who need them!
I also think more people should be looking into causes of obesity rates going up around the world– it looks like ultraprocessed foods are big part of that. I don’t think we can post links here but there are book, articles, and studies that are being published on this.
Omg @pyritedigger I couldn’t agree more with the replies being from people who feel ‘called out’!! So much angry defensiveness to a relatively benign statement. These drugs were not intended for weight loss so we DONT know what the long term use effects will be.
If obesity is a disease then so are all the other addictions. Would these folk defend methadone as a way to deal with opiate addiction? I wonder..
Taking Ozempic for weight loss is a privilege.
So is having the time and money to work out and eat healthy.
I don’t disagree but I am tired of medication shortages due to people with means using life saving drugs to lose some weight. I wouldn’t care if these drugs were plentiful, but they aren’t.
Would we be cool with a celebrity who is not a doctor commenting on what the “long term plan is” for any other drug prescribed for a any other chronic condition?
I’m not naive to how pharmaceutical companies can create issues like shortages for one group in the interest of selling to another, but that is a separate issue.
When it comes to obesity, suddenly, everyone’s a doctor and there’s this cultural permission for people who have never struggled with weight to look down upon people who have as if they are entitled to dictate their lives including the access to medication and not from a lens of pharmaceutical companies creating shortages, but from a lens of authority.
If you are someone in a body that has not had obesity it does not mean you are an authority over people who are! That includes being condescending to someone who has obesity by saying things like you are “proud” of them for losing weight all the way to thinking you get to have a say in what medications people with obesity get access to and speaking on the issue as if it is political!
Stop politicizing people’s bodies! Stop believing it’s okay to have authority over people’s bodies. And if you’re worried about medication shortages turn your gaze to the ACTUAL political issue of pharmaceutical companies controlling supply and demand for everyone.
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Why are we so critical of these drugs and not others that help people maintain a healthy lifestyle? Obesity should be treated medically just like other diseases and health issues.
I do not have to say but I never saw/see the appeal of both Rob Lowe and Tom Cruise. For me, it was Andrew McCarthy all the way.
Matt Dillon all the way.
All of them are milquetoast to me.
If you ever listen to his podcast you’ll quickly learn that Rob Lowe is a M.A.J.O.R gossip. He’s also been around forever and has connections to just about everyone in Hollywood/Politics/Sports past and present so while I’m not a Rob Lowe fan, I do enjoy the guests he speaks to. He has personal relationships with almost all of his guests. Because he’s such a gossip the stories that get told are terrific and very personal. All that to say, one of his first podcasts (can’t recall who the guest was) but he recounted how in his early days in Hollywood he was at a party and Don Johnson told him to put the nacho chip down (or similar type of chip) and to never eat carbs. Fast forward additional episodes and it’s clear that he’s been on this kind of restrictive type of diet for 40+ years. I’m not an expert but it really sounds like it borders on eating disorder territory. He would speak on the fact that he has always followed the Atkins diet and suddenly he’s got an Atkins deal.
Yeah it’s interesting to me how much flack and abuse female celebrities get for their diets, bodies, workouts, etc. and yet there is so much disordered eating and unhealthy relationships with food with male celebs as well. And being addicted to working out is a thing as well. And I think a LOT of these guys hide their unhealthy relationships with food and their bodies behind being “fit”.
My concern is for those who have been diagnosed with life-long conditions that MUST take drugs like Ozempic. These people will need certain medications for life. If any of their medications become hard or impossible to get due to people who take them for vanity’s sake, I have a problem with that. I don’t think Rob Lowe is wrong about fitness and diet…for him and his genetics. I had a mother who struggled with morbid obesity since childhood. I swear to you guys that she did NOT eat like the people on My 600# Life. The heart disease & high blood pressure that came along with her genetics eventually killed her. My father/hero lost most of his eyesight and almost a leg from diabetes. Diabetes complications eventually killed him. My biological father had colon cancer.
Somebody like Rob Lowe can’t understand what people with bad genetics deal with on the day-to-day. I do my best to deal with the fibromyalgia, rheumatoid (and osteo) arthritis, chronic pain and peripheral neuropathy that is a big part of my life. My doctors and I have had conversations about the risks of my meds. The risk of further disability is why I take what is prescribed to me. The ability to have a quality of life! Most of us have our own crosses to bear and we don’t need a non-medically trained celebrity to tell us how we need to live our lives to meet their standards. (Rant over…)
I guess I’m reading a different article than everyone else. Every weight loss program, every diet pill, including Ozempic (which is not just a diet pill), comes with a recommendation for proper diet and regular exercise. It’s all in the ads in the teeny tiny print that nobody could possibly read. And when doctors prescribe other medications, like for blood pressure and cholesterol, they also recommend a healthy diet and regular exercise. Even the CDC has guidelines for a healthy diet and exercise. You can name it “lifestyle” or you can call it a long-term prescription or Lowe’s “longevity of everything,” but it’s a larger issue than weight loss – it’s about staying as healthy as possible for as long as possible.
Example of eleventy-gazilllion of celebrities thinking they have something of any importance to say. Shut up, rob.
I’m a bit worked up for a Friday.
Ordinary people are working so darn hard to keep housed and fed due to wage stagnation and wage theft by the ultra wealthy-there’s is not any way for folks in this income bracket to maintain a healthy lifestyle and diet. No one has the disposable income or leisure time. And some folks are predisposed to overweight and to diabetes.
The bigger problem is people taking these drugs for cosmetic reasons means shortages for those taking the meds for medically indicated reasons!
You don’t have to be rich to be healthy. Linking fitness to wealth sends the wrong message that health & wellness is unobtainable for people of lower income. (I’m not talking about disease management because that has a different set of concerns where money and access would help). But suggesting that people eat better is in my opinion no different than advising people to quit smoking.
@Pomski – if you don’t see the link then I encourage you to learn about food deserts and the lack of access to fresh foods in many low income areas. In my city alone in disadvantaged areas they have been closing major grocery stores leaving those communities with ZERO access to groceries in their neighborhoods. You may not see the link in your life but there is in fact a link. And it doesn’t “send a wrong message”. It’s merely stating the reality of a LOT of poor and low income people.
Ameerah, I know a lot of people where I live who are very overweight and have access to both fresh food and open spaces to exercise. Although I take your point about the food deserts, this does not account for all (or even half of) people who are overweight.
While I agree his is overly privileged I didn’t take his comments about diet and exercise versus Ozemepic to be directed at people with serious medical issues like diabetes. I felt he was directly speaking to the Hollywood people who are doing it to lose an extra 15 pounds ie the Mindy Kalings, Kardashians, the Real Housewives. These people aren’t in medical need, they are beyond privileged themselves. They are just vein, shallow and sort of lazy. They are also taking medicine from people who need it and driving up the cost making it harder for those that actually have a medical need to get it.
So yeah a lot about Rob Lowe is problematic but he isn’t wrong that Mindy, Khloe and all the other people who are having Ozempic parties to look super skinny at the Oscars aren’t trash and should just hirer a trainer.
Two things can be true.
Except he didn’t mention ANY of those women. He just made a general statement. And that’s the problem.
I don’t think he is going to name names, no should he. That would be gross. But I did take him to be discussing people taking it recreationally not for actual medical needs and that is very different.
He would be terribly wrong to name names, but to call out Hollywood and the wealthy’s recreational use of life saving drugs for vanity isn’t wrong. These people can just work out more of they care that much they don’t need to be driving up the cost of diabetes drugs for people that actually need it.
Sorry I will never take anything to do with this man. Not since he blatantly lied just to jump on the “let’s all take a pop at Harry train”, by saying he saw Harry at a traffic lights in montecito and he was driving a convertable and had grown a pony tail.. He’s just a pathetic wagon chaser
I just hate the smug assumption that people who are overweight do not eat well or exercise – or as he would say a fit lifestyle. I was very slim the first half of my life (no credit to me, I just was) and have battled weight the second half. No need to bore everyone with my life but I can tell you it is not a difference of what I eat or amount of exercise.
I could be wrong [and so could everybody else], but the sense I got from reading this exerpt of the “plan for longevity” is refering to the people who are taking these drugs as a lose-weight-quick trick (it mentions the “latest Hollywood weight loss trend” right before that). I didn’t read it as critical of anybody who has medical need for it or suggesting people can exercise or manifest away their diabetes. We’re doing the best we can around real life without private chefs and trainers and copious amounts of leisure time like Lowe probably has.
I agree 100%. He was asked about weight loss drugs, not obesity and certainly not diabetes.
That is how I took it as well.
So my doctor put me on it 5”3’ 170lbs for menopausal weight gain. I was on for about 6 months. At the end of 6 months I came off it. Did I lose weight? Yes down to 155. Have I gained since, yes 10 lbs which seems to be holding. Side effects? Oh yay- exhaustion was awful to the point where I stopped doing any form of exercise cause I literally could barely function on day to day. My 4 hour beach walks..nope , walking the dog ..nope. Also had nausea randomly. Be sitting watching tv, get up barf, sit back down.
So it’s not for me and it was EXPENSIVE and my Canadian health insurance nor my blue cross covered it,
I hope it works for some but it’s not for me.
The long-term plan is: you stay on it. 🙄
Meh. If Rob wants to do anything medically responsible, he could hire a technical advisor for his 911 show. The amount of times Liv Tyler goes outside her scope of practice makes this nurse cringe.
He needs to let the experts in obesity and endocrine medicine deal with it, and STFU. He is talking about issues he has never had to deal with personally and has no idea what the lived experience is like.
Am I missing something? Where does he say anything about obesity or endocrine medicine? There are a lot of tangents in this thread that have gone far beyond his comments on weight loss drugs.
First, He is coming off very Ophra “you have to put the work in’, Second, what happens when you stop ANY weight loss regime? I lost weight on Atkins, and the second you stop it comes back. So, you make Atkins a lifestyle, I guess you do the same with Ozempic or Wigovy. Third, money doesn’t buy you everything, but it can hire a chef to create specific dietary meals for you and something else for your family when they don’t want to eat what you are having.
I wish I could plan my entire day around a fun physical activity. To have the funds and support to do something exciting every day, or go somewhere new, and not worry about kids, cooking, groceries, laundry, cleaning house, dishes, etc would be amazing.
Walking, jogging, living room yoga and aerobics might not be fun, but they are free.
Yes. I wake up early every morning to work out. I either run, or I do workouts by the amazing Heather Robertson (free on youtube). This is not a luxury for me. I’m 51 and daily exercise keeps anxiety and other perimenopause symptoms at bay.
This stuff is a bad idea. It can and does often paralyze people’s digestive tracts
Random thoughts. I think it’s great ozempic is available for those who need it. When these articles first started popping up here there was generally a lot of criticism of people using it for weight loss only, I’m glad that tide has turned.
But… I have been hesitant to comment on this because I don’t want to be marked as a body shamer /police. over the last 2 years especially, I’ve noticed how rake thin actresses are. So much so I do wonder if they eat at all. When I look at award pics apart from a few, all I see is ribs /bones. now we have all these more normal weight celebs on ozempic so they can be skinny too. What the hell is this doing for our psyche? We talk here about skinny Kate but man, so many actresses are all skin on bone. That normal weight women are taking ozempic to be extra thin is disturbing to me. I hate this as a message being sent, which it is.
Kaiser hits upon a key point here: Rob Lowe is a longtime evangelist and *paid spokesperson* for the Atkins Diet, which positions itself as a lifelong lifestyle one can use to lose and keep weight off…you know, a “plan for the longevity” of one’s weight loss.
So Rob is a paid spokesperson for a program and set of products that people currently spend thousands of dollars a year on and are, in effect, at real risk of losing market share and value of the paradigm shifts to medication based solutions. (This is the precise reason programs like Weight Watchers have embraced and incorporated GLP-1 therapies as part of their business model.)
That’s incredibly relevant to anyone reporting his “opinions” on the matter.
Someone in their 70s recently asked me how many people I know or have worked with who lost weight (did body recomp) and maintained it within 10% of their goal. My answer less than 1% more like 0. If someone is going through medical issues and an intervention is necessary then why not? If this is the best medical science available to us then why not. There will always be some privileged dolt abusing the system, and healthcare is inequitable af in the US. People just need to remember if it’s not you then it’s not your business. Rob needs to sit down, be quiet and eat his chef prepped macro balanced Atkins slough.
And the fat shaming continues!!! It’s a decision between a patient and a doctor, it’s my body, my choice, and follow the science on these drugs (which is that they are of massive benefit). Obesity causes heart disease and cancer. Joint pain. Diabetes. Leave the poor Wegovy (weight loss) and Ozempic (prediabetes) the heck alone!!! And don’t come for me like, “Oh he/I don’t mean for people with *health* problems” b/c the bottom line is you don’t know, and by continuing the fat shaming conversation the problem is perpetuated. Oooooh, what’s the plan, Rob? I’ve talked to my DOCTOR, I know the plan, and your concern is FAKE.