Thomas van Groningen has stopped taking the waste medication Ozempic, because he suffered from terrible side effects. It made the presenter paranoid. “It was mental.”
News of the Day star Thomas van Groningen has been plagued with his weight for years. Thanks to the weight-loss medicine Ozempic, he has lost quite a few kilos, but he has now stopped using it. The SBS 6 presenter suffered from side effects that seriously hindered his daily life. It was unsustainable, he says in the Subway.
Paranoid
Ozempic helped him in the right direction, Thomas says. “I don’t have diabetes, but I do want to pay attention to my health. I was just too fat. But really, I tried everything: dietitians, personal trainers, diet diaries. But the yo-yo effect remained.”
He continues: “Thanks to Ozempic, I lost weight quickly, but I suffered from mental side effects. I became anxious, insecure. Crazy, isn’t it? If someone said something nice to me, I immediately thought: what’s behind that? Yes, somewhat paranoid.”
‘I stopped’
Thomas found it frightening. “That feeling became so bad that I stopped. The positive thing is that my appetite has permanently decreased. I have now lost more than ten kilos and am now trying to keep it up myself. And I am succeeding.”
What does he actually think of people who tease him about his weight? “The funny thing is: 99 percent doesn’t bother me. Anonymous types who rant, I let it slide. But there is always one reaction that really ruins your day, that you keep thinking about.”

