The rise of ‘Ozempic feet’: Latest gruesome side effect of weight loss jabs revealed – and why even slim stars are falling victim to the curse

It’s often said that the hands and neck are the first indicator of ageing, as countless celebs reveal focusing on the areas to make sure they keep a youthful glow. 

However, there is another telling part of the body that has given away Hollywood stars’ more mature untreated complexions – especially when contrasted with their seemingly flawless visage – the feet.

Sporting stilettos on the red carpet can give a glamorous boost to any ensemble, but may also hint just how much the A-lister has focused on skincare or ‘tweakments’ on the upper half of their body.

And in other instances, A-listers like Sarah Jessica Parker and Victoria Beckham have spoken about how years in the spotlight, and donning high-inch stompers, has had an effect on their toes. 

As reported by the Royal College of Podiatry, ‘as we age, we naturally develop more problems with our feet due to normal daily wear and tear of joints, but also because the skin starts to become thin and loses its elasticity, as well as becoming dry and more fragile’.

This can have physical implications in terms of joint and muscle aches, as well as ‘developing bunions, signs of clawing of the toes along with general circulatory problems’.

It comes as eagle eyed fans have been taking note of famous feet after doctors have cautioned of one surprising side effect caused by a blockbuster weight loss drug.

‘Ozempic feet’ refers to sagging or aging skin on the feet due to rapid fat loss — and it’s the latest addition to a growing list of concerns that includes ‘Ozempic face’ and ‘Ozempic butt’, both caused by dramatic changes in body fat.

While the drug has taken Hollywood by storm, experts warn the cosmetic downsides are catching up. 

Dr Barry Weintraub, a New York-based board certified plastic surgeon, told DailyMail.com a loss of fat can impact water retention in the body and cause excessive sagging in the feet. 

Ozempic, along with sister drug Mounjaro, is approved to treat type 2 diabetes but is widely used off-label for weight loss — especially among celebrities.

Figures from 2024, which are likely an undercount, suggest one in eight Americans have taken a GLP-1 drug like Ozempic.

Fans are speculating stars like Sharon Osbourne and Oprah Winfrey — both of whom have admitted to taking the drugs — may be among the first to show signs of the ‘side-effect’.

A recent photo of the British presenter, shared on social media, shows the contrast between her face and rest of her body.

In the snap, where Sharon is cuddling up to  her two-year-old grandson, her face looks sleek and taut, yet signs of ageing are visible on her legs.

The wife of rocker Ozzy, who is 72, has in past spoken about her regrets when it comes to cosmetic procedures.

In December 2023, she revealed how her 2021 facelift is the ‘worst thing she ever did’ in a candid interview. 

The reality star who previously revealed the procedure left her looking like ‘Quasimodo’, told The Times: ‘I looked like Cyclops. I had one eye here and one eye there and my mouth was all skewiff.

‘And then I had to wait for that to heal before I could go back and have it corrected.’

Sharon has been open about her fondness for getting plastic surgery over the years.

She revealed that she last went under the knife in order to fix a previous operation that left her looking like the deformed protagonist in Victor Hugo’s novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame.

The Daily Star quotes Sharon as saying: ‘There’s not one part of my body that I haven’t had twisted, lifted, elongated, whatever.

‘I’ve been messed up many times. This last one was a kind of fix-it job from the guy that did it before.

‘I looked like Quasimodo, because I had one eye here, one eye there. It was wicked.’

She later claimed that the botched procedure had scared her off getting anymore cosmetic surgery done. 

Sharon has also said another facelift in 2019 left her looking like Elvis doing his trademark snarl, as it involved lifting her mouth.

The year 1999 saw her lose over 100 pounds through a gastric band operation and she revealed she had spent $120,000 on a facelift, tummy tuck, eye lift, abdominoplasty, liposuction and Botox as well at the time.

Sharon also admitted in 2007 that she had spent approximately £300,000 – which at the time equated to about $530,000 US on cosmetic surgeries and enhancements.

The TV host has had various tummy tucks, a breast reduction, vaginal cosmetic surgery and got a double mastectomy in 2012 after learning about her risk of developing breast cancer.

Elsewhere, Sex And The City star Sarah Jessica Parker has been candid about how she has treated her feet over the years. 

While Sarah has recently opened up about never getting plastic surgery – and jokingly lamented that she ‘missed the boat’ on getting a facelift.

However, the actress’s glowing skin and smooth facial features suggest that she has taken the time to take care of her visage, perhaps with cosmetics and treatments.

Speaking about her routine in 2023, the actress, 60, revealed to WWD that she uses a serum, eye balm and SPF from Roc’s Revive + Glow range.

But the star has in past spoken about how she hasn’t been as kind to her feet, after becoming as known as her Sex and the City character, Carrie Bradshaw, for sporting a pair of Manolo Blahnik heels. 

In 2013, she she admitted that her passion for high heels has caused permanent damage to her feet – and she’d had to go cold turkey as a result.

‘For ten or so years, I literally ran in heels,’ she told e-tailer Net-a-Porter‘s digital fashion magazine. ‘I worked 18-hour days and never took them off. I wore beautiful shoes, some better made than others, and never complained.’

‘But then I did I Don’t Know How She Does It, and I was very thoughtful about my whole wardrobe and said you know, [Kate Reddy] could not afford really good shoes, she would go to Nine West.

‘So I got shoes from there and the bottom of the shoes aren’t leather, they are plastic, so I slipped a couple times, twisted my ankle.

‘I went to a foot doctor and he said, “Your foot does things it shouldn’t be able to do. That bone there… You’ve created that bone. It doesn’t belong there.”

‘The moral of the story is, the chickens are coming home to roost. It’s sad, because my feet took me all over the world, but eventually they were like, “You know what, we are really tired, can you just stop – and don’t put cheap shoes on us?”‘

Elsewhere, Australian cinema legend Nicole Kidman recently sparked rumours she had recent cosmetic surgery performed on her face, after footage resurfaced of her shock appearance on The Graham Norton Show in 2016.

The Australian actress, 57, appeared on the long-running British talk show and shocked the host, 61, after he cheekily compared some old publicity photos of her from the 1980s to her current look.

‘You looked stunning on the cover of Dolly Magazine in 1983,’ Graham quipped, as he jokingly said Nicole looked so different and more mature today.

Nicole was seen cringing at her old modeling photos as she joked her modern appearance was so different, due to her new hairstyle.

‘I have to say to anyone that has curly hair when you are young, keep it, don’t straighten it. After awhile you don’t get your curls back,’ Nicole warned viewers.

Fans took to social media to note how different she now looks to how she did years ago – and question whether she has had a cosmetic touch up. 

The Hours star has previously credited healthy lifestyle choices as the secret behind her age-defying complexion. 

In 2007, she denied undergoing cosmetic surgery and said her flawless skin was down to a healthy lifestyle.

‘To be honest, I am completely natural,’ she told Marie Claire at the time.

‘I wear sunscreen and I don’t smoke. I take care of myself. I’m very proud to say that.’

However, in 2011, she admitted to getting Botox during an interview with German magazine, TV Movie.

‘I’ve tried a lot of things, but aside from sports and good nutrition, most things don’t make a difference,’ she said. 

‘I even tried Botox but I didn’t like how my face looked afterwards. Now I don’t use it any more and I can move my forehead again.’

However, her glowy smooth complexion looks to offer a contrast to her feet.

Another public figure who has spoken about cosmetic surgery – with her facial skin proving to look lustrous and glassy, whereas as her feet seem to show her age more – is American presenter Kelly Ripa.

The star, 54, recently shared on Let’s Talk Off Camera podcast that she’s interested in getting a ‘mini facelift’.

She made the confession during a candid conversation with her plastic surgeon Dr David Rosenberg about the rise of body dysmorphia.

Describing herself as a ‘minimalist’ when it comes to cosmetics procedures, Kelly began by telling listeners that she gets Botox injections ‘three times a year.’

She had ‘waited until [she] was 39’ to start getting Botox in her face after initially using the injectable — which temporarily paralyzes muscles — to treat underarm sweating.

‘I used to get Botox just in my armpits to stop from sweating. One day I said, “Do you think I should put Botox in my face?” And [Dr. Rosenberg] looked at me and he goes, “I thought this day would never come,” the mother-of-three recalled.

‘And I was like “Oh my God, I needed Botox”…there’s a sweet spot.’

But the mother-of-three insisted that her Botox use is ‘super minimal’ and that she only has it injected in a few areas.

‘I’m a minimalist…I do the crow’s feet and I do the neck and that’s it. I do it now three times a year.’

Kelly is also a huge skincare advocate and often uses topical products to help minimise signs of aging.

In another instance, fifty-nine year old Brooke Shields is another A-lister whose feet show regular signs of ageing whereas her face has maintained a breathtaking signature youthful glow.

However, in 2023, the star explained that while she got Botox in the past, she’s decided to embrace her natural beauty as she ages because she’s ‘scared’ of ‘over doing it’ and ending up ‘not looking like herself.’

The actress and model opened up about why she’s not interested in getting plastic surgery during a chat with Glamour magazine for its US Woman of the Year issue, explaining that she ‘doesn’t want to chase youth,’ but instead, ‘chase the now.’

She said that while she’s not against women going under the knife if they’re doing it ‘for the right reasons,’ it’s not for her personally.

And while she’s ‘seen it give women such confidence,’ she admitted that it did just the opposite for her when she received Botox injections in the past.

‘I am all for any of it if it truly is done for yourself, for the right reasons, and gives you a level of some kind of confidence that you need,’ said the Blue Lagoon alum.

‘Listen, I’ve seen it give women such confidence. But I think it’s easy to go down the slope of overdoing it. 

‘I’m scared of not looking like myself. The times that I’ve had Botox, I end up with this Spock eye and I’m like, “I don’t look like myself.”‘

While Brooke is not a fan of injectables or surgery, she said she does love to ‘try the newest’ skin regimens, like Fraxel – a ‘non-invasive’ laser treatment ‘for people who want to look younger without dramatic changes,’ according to its website.

‘I’ll get Fraxels and peels, or whatever the newest thing is, I’ll try it. I just don’t want to not look like myself,’ she added.

‘There’s more and more plastic surgery than ever. Because [people are] chasing youth. I don’t want to chase youth. I want to chase now.’

Brooke has long been open about her fears over plastic surgery and has continuously insisted that she’s never gone under the knife. 

Back in 2019, when asked by host Andy Cohen if she had gotten any surgical procedures during an episode of Watch What Happens Live, Brooke said, ‘No, I have not done a thing to my face. I’m afraid of it.’

Donatella Versace is among the other stars whose feet show a contrast to her glam face – and she has recently stunned her fans with a jaw-dropping transformation. 

The iconic Italian fashion designer, 69, looked younger than ever while attending The Devil Wears Prada musical launch in London in December.

The sister of the late Gianni Versace, the founder of the luxury fashion house Versace, showed off her taut visage while posing for the cameras. 

Many fans even joked that she went to ‘Lindsay Lohan’s doctor’ as they compared her to the Mean Girls actress, who also underwent a major beauty transformation recently.

It’s not the first time the businesswoman — known for her platinum blonde hair extensions and big lashes — sparked plastic surgery rumors with her dramatic makeovers.

Elsewhere, Victoria Beckham, 51, is a model and fashion powerhouse known for her beaming complexion.

However, the model has been open about how her feet have been affected after years of wearing six-inch stilettos have taken their painful toll on her.

In 2009, a source told the Mail: ‘The Beckham household is all about feetat the moment: David is having painkilling injections for bone bruisingon his foot, while Victoria is in agony with her misshapen feet.

‘She is suffering from shooting pain from the bunions.Normally, she kicks off her shoes in the house, but she has been out somuch recently in high heels that she is really feeling it.’

However, Victoria had insisted she will not resort to flat shoes.

‘I beyond hate ballerina flats,’ she said in previous interviews. ‘I can’t walk inthem. Unless they’re on a ballet dancer doing ballet, I just don’t getit. I love heels.’

‘Victoria calls her feet “the bane of my life”, but she isworried about having the operation because she fears they willcompromise her ability to wear heels and ruin her stylish look,’ the insider continued.

‘She puts up with the pain, but the doctor has told her sheseriously needs to consider a bunionectomy or ditch the heels for a fewmonths to let the inflammation calm down. She has not got that long todecide what to do.’