Jim Gaffigan says he lost 50 pounds on Mounjaro and wants to cut the stigma
A well-known comedian naming the drug he used adds to a growing set of celebrity disclosures, even as details like his dose and whether he has diabetes remain undisclosed.
Comedian Jim Gaffigan said he lost 50 pounds using Mounjaro after his weight reached 270 pounds, and told People he was talking about it on purpose to reduce the stigma around weight-loss drugs [1].
Gaffigan built a long comedy career on jokes about food and eating, and he is now among the public figures who have named the specific medication they take rather than leaving it to speculation [1]. Mounjaro is made by Eli Lilly and is approved to treat type 2 diabetes; the same molecule, tirzepatide, is approved to treat obesity under the brand name Zepbound [1].
That puts tirzepatide in a different category from semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic, which is approved for type 2 diabetes and also approved for obesity under the name Wegovy [1]. Novo Nordisk, which makes Ozempic, has said it does not support off-label use of its medications [1].
Other disclosures
Gaffigan is not the first celebrity to name a GLP-1 drug. Actor Eric Stonestreet said he takes Mounjaro for his type 2 diabetes and kept the diagnosis secret for years because he felt ashamed of it. "It's a game changer," he told People [1].
Oprah Winfrey said in December 2023 that she takes a weight-loss drug but did not say which one. "I now use it as I feel I need it, as a tool to manage not yo-yoing," she said, adding, "I'm absolutely done with the shaming from other people and particularly myself" [1]. Singer Meghan Trainor said her weight-loss process after her second pregnancy included working with a dietitian and a trainer, and "yes, I used science and support (shoutout to Mounjaro!)" [1]. Kelly Clarkson said she takes a weight-loss medication but that "everyone thinks it's Ozempic — it's not. It's something else." She said her heaviest weight was about 203 pounds and that she is 5 feet 3 and a half inches tall [1].
Several of these accounts describe mixed experiences. One reality star, Renee Graziano, shared before-and-after photos and wrote that "the substantial amount of weight that I have lost really has made me feel and look younger than I have in a long time" [1].
Why it matters for patients
When a familiar entertainer attaches his name and a clothing-size-scale number to a drug, it can make a prescription medicine feel ordinary. Gaffigan framed his own disclosure as a way to push back on shame, a theme that runs through several of the celebrity accounts, including Winfrey's [1].
At the same time, a public figure's personal result is not a clinical result. Gaffigan's 50-pound loss and his starting weight of 270 pounds are his own numbers, reported by People, not outcomes from a trial [1]. Mounjaro is approved for type 2 diabetes, so a patient's insurance coverage and the reason a doctor writes the prescription can depend on whether the person has that diagnosis or obesity, which is what Zepbound is approved for [1].
Some basics about Gaffigan's case have not been disclosed. It has not been reported whether he has type 2 diabetes, what dose he takes, how long he has been on the drug, whether he also changed his diet or exercise, or whether he experienced side effects. Gaffigan's representatives have not commented beyond the People interview [1].
This is also not a new kind of disclosure. Winfrey, Stonestreet, Trainor and Clarkson each described using a medication alongside other changes, and each described a different drug or declined to name one [1].
Sources
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