Sarah Huckabee Sanders Can't Escape Ozempic Rumors

A myriad of celebrities look different after taking Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs, and many have speculated that Former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders is not-so-secretly among their number. When she spoke at the 2024 Republican National Convention, netizens quickly hopped on X, formerly known as Twitter, to discuss the fact that Sanders was nearly unrecognizable in throwback pics before her weight loss. "Sarah Huckabee Sanders needs to lay off the Ozempic," one wrote. Some even speculated that Sanders' weight loss was a desperate attempt to get tapped as Donald Trump's VP. 

Ahead of the divisive politician announcing JD Vance as his running mate, rumors were rife that Sanders was among the contenders for the coveted role. But Trump reportedly doesn't approve of women who aren't considered skinny. His former personal assistant, Madeleine Westerhout, let slip that the president didn't want to be photographed with his youngest daughter, Tiffany Trump, because he considered her to be overweight. Commenting on a shot of Sanders and the president, one X user snapped, "You can stop Ozempic now, Sarah. It didn't help you get named VP because it was never going to happen."

Rumors that the former press secretary's noticeable weight loss wasn't just a result of lifestyle changes plagued her long before the 2024 elections, though, with some netizens pointing out on X in late 2023 that Sanders "has Ozempic face," a term used to describe the changes people's faces undergo when taking the drug (side effects include signs of aging and sagging skin). Unlike other celebrities who have spoken out about using weight loss drugs, Sanders hasn't addressed the rumors about her dramatic transformation or whether Ozempic was a part of it. And technically, she shouldn't have to explain herself to anyone.

While she didn't make a big deal out of it and only addressed it once in a quick statement on X, Sarah Huckabee Sanders was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2022. The Republican politician also let her constituents know that she had undergone surgery to remove her thyroid as a result. Her doctor's statement, which was posted alongside Sanders', reassured the public that the Arkansas governor was set for a speedy recovery but that "She will need adjuvant treatment with radioactive iodine, as well as continued long-term follow up."

From what the former press secretary's doctor described, it appears that she had her entire thyroid removed. A thyroidectomy requires patients to take chronic medication to replace the hormones their thyroid produced. While many can experience weight gain after the surgery because of the dip in thyroid hormones, some experience weight loss. This can often happen if an incorrect dosage of medication is prescribed, something which occurs more often than not since it's a tricky process figuring out the correct dose for each patient. If someone is on too high of a dose of thyroid medication, it can cause weight loss. 

This might be another explanation for Sanders' transformation. On the other hand, she might simply have changed her lifestyle after getting diagnosed with cancer, resulting in weight loss. With Ozempic doing the rounds, of course, people are quick to assume that someone is taking the GLP-1 drug when, really, they're simply making the requisite lifestyle changes. It's worth noting, however, that Ozempic is generally not considered safe for people who have had thyroid cancer, so perhaps Sanders didn't hop on that train after all.