Ozempic etiquette and the sneaky ways to find out if your friends are using it

Weight loss injections have become so popular that almost everyone knows someone on them.

Some people, like me, are happy to shout their jabbing habit from the rooftops while others stay silent, not even telling their partners.

But what’s the best way to proceed if you suspect your slimmed-down pal is taking Ozempic but she’s keeping schtum about how she achieved her trimmer figure?

Here are some simple dos and don’ts for navigating Ozempic etiquette.

DON’T ASK OUTRIGHT ‘

‘You’re looking slim, are you taking Ozempic?’ Is likely to be swiftly followed by a ghosting.

If your friend wanted people to know she was using so-called skinny jabs, she’d let them know.

Many women fear criticism if they reveal that they’ve resorted to weight-loss drugs as some consider it to be “cheating” if you don’t lose weight the old-fashioned way (i.e. through calorie restriction and misery).

Women who underwent gastric band or sleeve surgery experienced this (remember Fern Britton?) and now it’s happening to the jabbers, too.

...BUT DO COMPLIMENT THEIR WEIGHT LOSS

We all want people to notice our weight loss, even if we don’t reveal how we achieved it.

There’s nothing worse than meeting friends after dropping two dress sizes and nobody says a thing.

One acquaintance told me I had developed “Ozempic face” recently.

No doubt intended as an insult but, as the former owner of chubby hamster cheeks, it made me deliriously happy.

If complimenting somebody’s body shape seems too personal, then tell your friend she looks “glowing” or “healthy”, and see if she coughs up to her secret.

STOP MENU-SHAMING!

I used to always order three courses, scoff the lot and then finish everyone else’s.

I now eat far less, even if people do know the reason why.

Struggling to finish a restaurant meal and steering away from rich dishes are signs your friend probably is using injections, but that’s still no reason to declare “You’ve left half of that – what a waste!” to the rest of the table or mock her for ordering a lowly side salad.

INCLUDE THEM

Not inviting someone to a dinner party or meal out because you think they’re using weight-loss drugs is a rotten thing to do.

Us jabbers will eat less and may not drink alcohol but we’re still fun, great company and enjoy socialising.

Being told you weren’t included in a night out because “you’re not really eating at the moment” feels like being back in school and not being picked for the PE team.

DROP THE INTERROGATION

“How many calories are you eating? What program are you following? Which weight-loss group do you attend?”

Badgering your friend and trying to trip her up so that she is cornered into confessing to Ozempic is hardly the mark of sisterhood.

There’s a huge buzz around skinny jabs but, let’s be honest, you wouldn’t dream of probing someone so aggressively to find out what other medication they were on.

DO ASK FOR DIET TIPS

If your friend has successfully lost weight and you want to shed a few pounds yourself then by all means ask for tips.

Ozempic users may not admit to using the drugs, but they’ll be happy to reveal the changes they made to their diet.

They might have dropped down to two meals, they’ll probably have upped their protein to prevent muscle loss and they’re likely to have binned chocolate and cheese.

It feels liberating for successful slimmers to talk about overhauling their diet no matter how they did it.

SKIP THE SKINNY JAB HORROR STORIES

As soon as you reveal you’re taking weight-loss drugs – in my case Mounjaro – people can’t wait to tell you apocryphal horror stories.

The fact is the medication is safe and the story you heard is likely to be an urban myth.

And saying that you think overweight people should work on their willpower rather than injecting themselves, isn’t going to make her more likely to confide in you.

ADMIT IT – YOU’RE TEMPTED, TOO!

Barely a day goes by without someone wanting to pick my brains about what it’s like to take Mounjaro. So if you’re thinking about getting a prescription yourself, then say so; jabbers are more likely to come out to fellow users.