A mum who shed five stone using Ozempic didn’t hesitate to give the jab to her 12-year-old daughter in a bid to prevent her from gaining weight.
Kait Handler, from New York, often battled with weight and observed her daughter Birdie starting to face similar challenges at the tender age of eight.
She put Birdie into therapy, supervising her diet, upping her steps, and even enrolling her in a fat camp.
But this year, she turned to telehealth obesity gurus Mochi, who prescribed Ozempic after she initially got the cold shoulder from doctors.
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Birdie got her hands on semaglutide – the same stuff that’s in Wegovy and Ozempic – after a video call.
Kait said to the Wall Street Journal: “She’s struggling with her own self-worth and this could alleviate those issues. Why wouldn’t I give her the tool that she would need to do that?”
(Image: Kaitlin Handler / Facebook)
Statistics show kids aged between 12 and 15 using the drug in recent years, according the Metro while 8,700 children used the drug in 2020 compared to 60,000 youngsters in 2023, reports the Mirror.
Birdie’s treatment costs are around $79 a month, with an extra $99 on top for monthly meds. Since starting the treatment, she’s dropped just over half a stone, adding to the 1.2 stone she already lost at a weight-loss camp.
Birdie said: “When I look at myself, I don’t have as much shame as I did before. The happier I get, the sadder I’ll be when I’m not happy anymore.”
She’s also had to deal with mild nausea from the medication but says her hunger pangs are now more manageable. Dr Joyce Lee, a pediatrician from the University of Michigan, noted that some kids experience severe nausea, vomiting or constipation.
Meanwhile, Birdie’s dad has noticed a drop in family stress, explaining that “the drug has eased the friction that tends to develop between parents and children over weight battles, removing the need for emotional discussions about eating”.
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