GK Barry has urged influencers in the public eye to be more open about using weight-loss injections, while sharing her concerns about how widespread use of GLP-1 medications could affect women’s body image.
The author and Netflix actress, whose real name is Grace Keeling, rose to fame after sharing her life unfiltered on TikTok in 2020. The Cambridge-born 27-year-old has since become the youngest-ever panellist on Loose Women, sparked calls from ITV viewers for a new I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! rule and made a cameo in a Harlan Coben television series.
Speaking to Fabulous Magazine this month, Barry discussed her views on weight-loss drugs and admitted she had always been “very used to being thin”.
“So when you put even a tiny bit of weight on, that’s all you think about. It feels like the end of the world. I went drastically the other way,”
she confessed.
The Saving Grace podcaster said online critics began accusing her of using GLP-1 injections after she publicly lost weight. Barry denied using the medication.
“People were accusing me of being on Ozempic. I am not on the jabs. I am actually scared of needles, but it also just feels a bit too much for me,”
she told the publication.
Barry, who attended Nottingham Trent University, said the popularity of weight-loss medications made her ‘worries’ that society could soon reach a point where anything larger than a straight size 10 is considered ‘unacceptable’, according to Fabulous.
Data previously published by social-commerce platform Mys Tyler indicated that the average British woman wears between dress sizes 16 and 18. A separate NHS survey suggested that 52 percent of women in Britain are always trying to lose weight.
Research has found that around 80 percent of current GLP-1 users are women, while men are four times less likely to seek out the so-called ‘skinny jab’, according to The Health Foundation. A paper published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism found that key motivations for using injectable weight-loss medications include reducing weight-related health risks and ‘improving body satisfaction’.
One previous study claimed that ‘women who consider themselves larger felt more positive about themselves when they were able to fit into the smaller-sized pants’.
GK Barry calls for honesty over weight-loss injections
The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! star said she understands why some people choose to use GLP-1 medications. However, she criticised influencers who conceal their use of the drugs while presenting apparent ‘fitness transformations’ online.
“I know it’s no one’s business, but if you’re in the public eye, unfortunately it is,”
she said.
“And if I ever got anything done, I would come online and be like: ‘Oh gosh, I’m really sorry,’ and do my public apology that I did get my nose done.”
Amy Tapper says Mounjaro ‘changed’ her life
Several celebrities have spoken openly about using GLP-1 medications such as Mounjaro, including Gogglebox star Amy Tapper.
In an interview with MailOnline, the former Channel 4 favourite said she had combined Mounjaro injections with regular exercise to help achieve her eight-stone weight-loss goal.
“I’m fitting into size 18 clothes for the first time since I was 15 or 16 – it’s hard for me to believe,”
Tapper said earlier this year.
“It’s changed my life. I do get annoyed when people call it the ‘lazy way out’. I don’t want people to think I haven’t tried — this has been my only option to get this far.”
How to use GLP-1 medication safely
Dr Francesca Testa, from weight-loss support company Voy, told LADbible that people using GLP-1 injections should prioritise protein in their diets.
“Try and include a source of protein during meals such as yoghurt, eggs and lean meat. This will help you stabilise energy levels, support muscle maintenance and keep you comfortably full for longer,”
she said.
“Those on weight-loss medication can find it harder to recognise hunger cues due to changes in hunger perception, which can sometimes lead you toward quick, low-nutrition snacks at parties or after a couple of drinks, which is not beneficial for your goals.”
Dr Testa also advised people using weight-loss injections to consume alcohol slowly and in moderation.
“Alcohol may affect you differently on weight loss injections. If alcohol is part of your celebrations, sip slowly,”
she said.
“This helps prevent blood alcohol levels from rising too quickly, keeps calories in check, and reduces the likelihood of late-night snack cravings. Pairing drinks with water can also help pace consumption.”
