Ozempic has sparked its fair proportion of controversy, however it’s received nothing on TikTok’s “oatzempic.” If the viral concoction hasn’t graced your FYP simply but, this is a fast rundown: oatzempic is a drink made with oats, water, and lime juice. Though objectively unappetizing on paper (bitter oat milk, anybody?) the drink is alleged to assist folks shed pounds shortly, Ã la actual GLP-1s like Ozempic). With a easy recipe and the attract of fast outcomes, it is no marvel that #Oatzempic already has over 2,000 posts on TikTok. However is it really secure to attempt your self?
Individuals documenting their oatzempic experiences on-line say the drink has helped them curb cravings and attain their weight-loss objectives. “I began this on Monday and it really works,” one commenter wrote beneath an oatzempic video with over 60K likes. “It has decreased my urge for food as properly.” However not everyone seems to be satisfied. “Grinding the oats into gloop mechanically, mainly pre-digests the fiber, which signifies that it isn’t going to maintain you just about as full for practically as lengthy,” mentioned dietitian Abbey Sharp in a March 2024 TikTok. Others voiced related issues in regards to the efficacy of oatzempic, together with apparent qualms in regards to the style.
Even when you may get previous the tangy taste, is oatzempic really efficient . . . or secure to drink in any respect? And maybe extra importantly: have we discovered nothing in regards to the risks of hyper-restrictive, liquid-based diets? To unravel the viral oatzempic development, we spoke with specialists about what you must know earlier than whipping out the rolled oats your self. Learn on to be taught extra in regards to the oatzempic development, together with potential dangers, advantages, and its true results on weight reduction.
Specialists Featured in This Article:
Avantika Waring, MD, is an endocrinologist, doctor govt, and the chief medical officer at 9amHealth.
Katherine Basbaum, RD, is a diet knowledgeable and medical dietitian for MyFitnessPal.
What Is Oatzempic?
Oatzempic usually refers to a drink constituted of a half cup of oats, one cup of water, and a squeeze of lime, all of that are blended collectively. Some folks alter the recipe by including cinnamon, peanut butter, or chia seeds. Oatzempic is usually used as a meal alternative in the beginning of the day, that means you drink the concoction on an empty abdomen, then eat the remainder of your meals as regular. Nonetheless, different creators drink oatzempic extra usually, relying on their choice.
One signal that it is best to keep away from this development? It is unclear who got here up with the recipe, however it would not seem to have been a health care provider or registered dietitian. There are movies touting an oats-and-lime-juice concoction as “the drink that helped me lose X kilos in X months” posted way back to Feb. 2023. That mentioned, it was solely extra not too long ago that individuals began calling this drink “oatzempic.”
Oatzempic Dangers
The excellent news is that — for most individuals — oatzempic would not pose any imminent hazard. “It doesn’t, nevertheless, change a nutritious diet inclusive of protein, fruit and veggies, and wholesome fat,” says endocrinologist Avantika Waring, MD. “If it is getting used as a meal alternative all through the day, an individual would miss out on many necessary macronutrients in addition to nutritional vitamins and minerals.”
Scientific dietitian Katherine Basbaum, MS, RD, provides that consuming giant portions of uncooked oats may also have a laxative impact, probably resulting in diarrhea and dehydration. “Whereas you may even see a dip within the scale, it is not precise fats loss, and there’s a threat of changing into dehydrated if you’re not consuming an sufficient quantity of water,” Basbaum says.
There might not be an instantaneous threat to ingesting oatzempic, however we all know that restrictive diets may be very dangerous in the long term (each mentally and bodily). Restrictive diets like cleanses additionally perpetuate disordered consuming, and subsequently have the potential to guide you down a path of dangerous consuming habits.
Oatzempic Advantages
There are some well being advantages to consuming extra oats, however general, the oatzempic development will not do you a lot good. “From a medical perspective, there isn’t any well being good thing about oatzempic past the well being advantages of consuming, for instance, oats with out sugar or components,” Dr. Waring says. And once more, the dangers of a weight loss program that emphasizes meal alternative or restriction far outweigh any potential advantages. Should you’re seeking to improve satiety and curb cravings, think about a tasty, fiber- and protein-rich oatmeal recipe as a substitute.
Can Oatzempic Assist You Lose Weight?
The quick reply is not any, oatzempic just isn’t an efficient or secure methodology for weight reduction. “We have no knowledge to counsel [oatzempic] is efficient for weight reduction,” Dr. Waring reiterates. So what in regards to the excessive weight reduction individuals are reporting on social media? For starters, there’s an opportunity they are not being sincere. (It is identified to occur on the web.) However even when folks are dropping pounds due to oatzempic, Basbaum says they’re in all probability dropping water weight, which implies any “outcomes” they’re seeing are almost certainly short-term.
To that time, the Nationwide Institutes of Well being has reported that, whereas restrictive diets can lead to early weight reduction (due to the calorie restriction), “they have an inclination to result in weight acquire as soon as an individual resumes a standard weight loss program.” There’s additionally little analysis on the long-term results of diets like this. “We have to take into account that there may be zero analysis linking this fad to weight reduction,” Basbaum emphasizes.
Is Oatzempic Just like Precise Ozempic?
The time period oatzempic is intelligent advertising, however the oat drink has no similarities to precise Ozempic, past the title. “Oatzempic doesn’t mimic the consequences of precise GLP-1s,” Basbaum says. “Ozempic, the drug, works by enhancing the consequences of a naturally occurring hormone, GLP-1, that may decrease starvation, cravings, and urge for food. The oatzempic substances, both individually or together, have little or no to no impact on the enhancement of the GLP-1 hormone.”
That mentioned, oats do comprise fiber, which is thought to extend satiety. “Since one of many results of GLP-1’s is that they promote a sense of fullness or satiety, it is potential that ingesting blended oats, or consuming high-fiber meals on the whole may equally promote a sense of fullness,” Dr. Waring says. However it might not be sufficient to maintain you full when you’re swapping a wholesome, well-rounded breakfast with the drink. Plus, “consuming high-fiber meals, lean proteins, and ingesting loads of water would probably have the identical impact,” Dr. Waring notes. The cherry on high? It will in all probability style higher too.