TikTok Myth of the Week: “Oatzempic” Is a Way to Lose Weight
A new Ozempic dupe is taking over TikTok, and this time it’s not a berberine supplement , but a drink you can make at home. With oats and water. Isn’t that called oatmeal? No, the correct hashtag is #oatzempic.
Look, I’m not the first person to post about this outside of TikTok, so an important note about how these things go viral. Sometimes the creators of an app truly believe the TikTok myth (or present it as true), and then people like me step in to destroy that myth. Other times, TikTokers are just messing around and the mainstream media is misunderstanding and horrified. This time? Eh, a little bit of both.
Why are oat smoothies called a weight loss aid?
TikTok is full of weight loss “lifehacks” of dubious value and effectiveness. Bland statements like “eat a little less food than usual” don’t go viral. What means? False concerns about gut health or hormones tend to be beneficial. The same goes for anything that can be prepared according to a certain recipe or followed a certain routine; your followers will post diaries (“day 1…”) and before and after results. Whether the hack works or not, you will get active participation in the process.
Oatzempic leverages this simple recipe phenomenon combined with the fact that anything that mentions “ozempic” is bound to go viral. “I’m going on vacation in mid-April, so I want to lose a couple of pounds,” says the narrator in a Zals Boutique video showing the process of making a smoothie. “So many people are losing weight with this drink, and that’s what I’m looking for.”
Another video begins with, “Lose 40 pounds with an oat drink in two months,” and then immediately follows, “We’ve made it to day eight.” It’s fascinating to study: a massive, hard-selling marketing campaign with no actual product. Because, of course, it’s nothing more than watered-down oatmeal.
What is included in an oatmeal smoothie?
As dozens of videos told me, the recipe is:
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1 glass of water
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½ cup oatmeal
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Juice of half a lime
Some videos say that you should drink it every morning on an empty stomach. Some say it should also be taken before bed.
A half-cup of oatmeal contains 154 calories, including 27 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of protein and 3 grams of fat. Water contains zero calories. The juice of half a lime contains 6 calories.
The narrator of the Zals Boutique video says she “was full for hours. It literally cured my appetite for almost the entire day.” This is a 160 calorie drink . If you don’t eat much food because you’re “full” from eating 160 calories, you’ll end up on an unhealthy low-calorie diet. To recap, a 126-pound woman (pick one example from the US Dietary Guidelines) burns between 1,600 and 2,400 calories per day , depending on her activity level.
Or to put it another way: Oatzempic is a recommendation to drink 160 calories (10% or less of your daily caloric needs) instead of one or more meals throughout the day. It’s bad for both your body and your mind. Drink watered-down oatmeal if you want, but don’t pretend it’s a diet.