SHOCK CONFESSION: Katie Price has stunned fans with a chilling admission after her dramatic weight loss, branding herself a “stick woman” — as her own family desperately beg her to get medical help.
Katie Price has revealed her family are urging her to seek medical help after growing concerns about her dramatic weight loss.
The former glamour model, 47, who has previously denied using weight loss medication, has sparked concern in recent months with her worryingly thin frame.
Back in September, the TV personality revealed that she had undergone some tests over her weight loss.
Giving an update on her podcast The Katie Price Show, Katie called herself a ‘stick woman’ and said doctors were concerned about her low blood pressure.
Katie added she was feeling the pressure from her mother Amy to go to the doctors as she told her sister Sophie: ‘All I’ve had, since everywhere has been closed, is, “Have you phoned the doctors yet? Have you phoned?”
‘I’m like, “Yes, mum. I went to the doctors today.” I screenshotted the appointment.’
Katie Price has revealed her family are urging her to seek medical help after growing concerns about her dramatic weight loss
Sophie asked: ‘Did you actually though? Because mum has been speaking to me about this.’
Katie replied: ‘Yes. I’m going in there to talk about blood tests, MRI, everything she wants me to have to get to the bottom of why the price is – forget stick man – stick woman.’
The mother-of-five added she had to have her blood pressure done three times because doctors thought it was so low that there must have been an error.
In October, Katie confessed she had been hospitalised for her weight loss – which she initially conceded was her aim – however later insisted was baffling doctors and left needing tests to assess the situation.
Katie told fans on her Snapchat Story she ‘doesn’t know why’ her frame is shrinking so much as she undergoes tests.
She began: ‘I’ve been up early at the doctors so she could do some bloods and because my veins are so s*** they had three attempts.
‘They could only fill two tubes up, so I’ve got to go back in two weeks. And I’ve got to have my stitches out then because they looked at my little stab wound that I did…’
Katie added: ‘The reason I’m going to the doctors is because I keep losing weight and I don’t know why. So that’s that.’
The former glamour model, 47, who has previously denied using weight loss medication, has sparked concern in recent months, displaying a very thin frame
Katie added she was feeling the pressure from her mother Amy (pictured) to go to the doctors
In November, Katie started hormone replacement therapy to treat menopause symptoms – in a pill and gel format.
Speaking for the first time in detail about the effects of her being on HRT, she discussed how she feels ‘worse’ but is ‘persevering’.
She explained: ‘It’s my sixth day today. I’ve been feeling sick, I’m bloated and I’m very tired.
‘I’m not sure if it’s the HRT. I’m on two tablets and then I put the gel on my thigh. I didn’t want a patch because I thought it might come off.’
‘I’m still getting the night sweats, if not worse, but I am persevering. I have one more week of the tablets then it’s just the gel.’
Q&A: What is HRT? by Thea Jourdan
WHAT IS HRT AND WHAT DOES IT DO?
HRT does the work of oestrogen, levels of which plummet after the menopause. Women usually take a combination of synthetic oestrogen and a second hormone, progesterone.
‘Most women in the UK take combined HRT because taking oestrogen on its own can increase the risk of developing cancer of the womb,’ says Kathy Abernethy, chair of the British Menopause Society. ‘Oestrogen-only HRT is usually only given to women who have had their wombs removed.’
ARE THERE ANY RISKS TO CONSIDER?
A major US study in 2002, from the Women’s Health Initiative USA, was the first to ring alarm bells that HRT may lead to a raised risk of heart disease and breast cancer. As a result, many doctors stopped prescribing it overnight.
But the study was found to be flawed — the average age of the women in the study was 63, when the risk of breast cancer naturally rises anyway, and half were smokers.
‘The risks were overestimated for women of normal menopausal age between 50 and 60,’ says Kathy. ‘For most women under the age of 60, and for many over age 60, the benefits of HRT are clear.’
SO DOES HRT REALLY CAUSE CANCER?
Any risk comes with longer use, says Kathy.
Cancer Research UK says there is strong evidence HRT can cause breast, womb and ovarian cancer, but the chance is low compared to other risk factors. To put it in perspective, while minimising HRT could prevent 1,400 cancer deaths per year, keeping to a healthy weight could prevent 13,200 and stopping smoking could prevent 22,000.
ARE THERE OTHER SIDE-EFFECTS?
‘Women who take HRT may have side-effects including breast tenderness, headaches, nausea, indigestion, tummy pain and vaginal bleeding,’ says Professor Kamila Hawthorne, Royal College of GPs’ professional development vice-chair. Taking HRT as tablets (not patches or gels) may slightly raise the risk of blood clots.
WHO SHOULD NOT BE GIVEN HRT?
Those who have a personal or family history of hormone-sensitive cancers, such as ovarian and breast, and women who have had deep vein thrombosis. High blood pressure should be controlled before starting HRT.
WHAT ARE THE ALTERNATIVES?
Non-hormonal options include Tibolone (Livial), derived from the Mexican yam, which mimics oestrogen. Blood pressure medication Clonidine, which affects the dilation of blood vessels, can alleviate hot flushes and night sweats.
Bio-identical hormones, derived from plant oestrogens and prescribed by private clinics, are said to be similar to human sex hormones. But the NHS does not recommend these as they are not regulated.