Celtic fan nicknamed ‘Fat Pal' sheds five stone in five months with celeb weight-loss Mounjaro jab
A Celtic supporting father-of-two who was once nicknamed 'Fat Pal' by his friends has dropped five stone in five months after turning to celebrity weight-loss jab Mounjaro . Sean Burns, 32, from Glasgow, said he has 'struggled with excess weight ' his whole life and was always 'the heaviest one' in his friendship group, weighing 15st at 5ft 6in. After years of failed diets , snack van lunches like burger and chips, and hiding his body on lads' holidays, he finally found something that worked. Sean started using Mounjaro, a weekly injectable medication similar to Ozempic, in May 2024 after hearing about it from friends – and said the weight 'just fell off'. In December, the NHS spending watchdog recommended Mounjaro – also known as tirzepatide and made by Eli Lilly – for people with a body mass index (BMI) of more than 35 and at least one weight-related illness. The joiner said he has gone from wearing an extra-large to a medium or small, ditched junk food and even set up his own weight-loss support business to help others on the same journey. He said he finally feels like a 'proper' dad and can keep up with his two young children – Faryl Rose, four, and Shay, two – something which felt impossible a year ago. 'My nickname throughout my youth was ' Fat Pal',' Sean said 'I piled the weight on even more as my wee daughter became a toddler because we had more snacks in the house. 'I was coming home from work, and the first thing I wanted to do was play with the kids – roll around on the floor with them – but every time I did, I needed to lie down . 'I was always out of breath and, after five minutes, I was struggling. I decided that this was enough. I really needed to take action in order to become a proper, fully functioning father.' Sean had tried countless diets and fitness plans over the years, including the Cambridge diet, but nothing ever stuck. 'I've tried lots of different diets and all sorts of things,' he explained. "I've always been a bit of a foodie, loved snacks and full-fat fizzy juice. I've tried everything, all the Cambridge diets and that stuff, it just didn't agree with me.' He said gym workouts were not for him either and after seeing the transformation of other people including close family members from using Mounjaro, Sean decided to try it in May 2024. He said: 'I thought, I may as well try it, what's the worst that could happen? I've tried everything else, why not try this?' Sean said the results were almost immediate. He added: 'I spent hundreds each month, and at some points, the demand for them was so high that the prices doubled. 'Paying for it all, however, was worth it… especially considering I would have spent that amount on takeaways , and some. 'After the first course of the four-week pen, I could see the pounds dropping off and I felt better. It was the best feeling in the world.' In just five months, Sean's weight dropped from 15st to just under 10st. He continued: 'On lads' holidays, hanging about the pool was always embarrassing. The rest of the lads would be in their shorts, and I would be wearing a t-shirt to go in the pool, hiding in the corner away from everybody because I didn't want to show my belly off. 'In t-shirts, I went from wearing an extra-large to a small or medium. It's a great feeling. I can wear clothes I really want to, clothes I like.' Before using the jab , Sean said his daily food intake was packed with high-fat, high-calorie meals. He explained: 'I would have a full Scottish breakfast – all fried foods, sausages, potato scones, fried bread etc. 'For lunch, I would grab food from a snack van , usually a burger and chips. At dinner time, I would load up my plate with as much food as possible.' Now, Sean says his eating habits are completely different. He told: 'I'm still eating three meals a day, however, the portion size is so much smaller. I no longer crave greasy, unhealthy food, I actually prefer chicken and salad now.' He has also enlisted the help of a personal trainer and nutritionist to stay on track and avoid loose skin after the dramatic weight loss . Although Sean has seen positive results, he said one of the biggest problems he noticed was the lack of support available for people using weight-loss medication. 'My experience was that the pen was sold to me – no pre, during or post-care was available,' he said. 'The seller got their money, and that was the end of the story. I'm losing weight, my body isn't used to this. What nutrients, supplements and vitamins do I need to keep me on the right track?' That is when he decided to launch SlimResults in January, a business offering doctor-backed advice, nutritional support and round-the-clock help for people using weight-loss jabs . 'We walk them through every step of their weight-loss journey ,' he said. 'There is 24/7 support available, and once they have achieved their goal weight, we are still there to support them. "At SlimResults we are offering the full package: medical, nutritional and PT advice, etc, not just for the duration of customers using the pens , but forever. We will always be there to help.' Now, for Sean, life looks completely different. He said: 'I'm running about playing in parks with my kids, on the slides, on the swings. I could not do that last year." However, he issued a warning to anyone else looking to go on a similar journey. He finished: 'I would like to advise anyone embarking on this journey to do your due diligence." The NHS has been contacted for comment.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Warning over TikTok filming by hospital patients
Patients who film their own medical treatment for TikTok or Instagram could be putting themselves and NHS staff at risk, the Society of Radiographers (SoR) has warned. The trade union's annual conference heard that more patients were videoing their procedures on mobile phones, often without asking permission. This could distract staff or make them feel uncomfortable and anxious, the society material on social media also risks publicising the private medical data of other people who may be in the same room or area of the hospital. "I had one patient whose relative started filming while I was trying to set up," said Ashley d'Aquino, a therapeutic radiographer from London. "It wasn't the right time - I was trying to focus on delivering the treatment."Ms d'Aquino, who is also a local union representative, said she had recently been contacted by other colleagues in a similar situation. "We had a member of staff who agreed to take photos for a patient," she said. "When the patient handed over her phone, the member of staff saw that the patient had also been covertly recording her, to publish on her cancer blog." Most NHS staff wear identity badges and their names and job titles may be visible on videos posted online. The union said another of its members, a department assistant from the south coast of England, was inserting a cannula as part of a cancer procedure, when the patient's 19-year old daughter started filming on her phone. "She thought it would be entertaining on social media but she didn't ask permission," said the member of staff. "I spent the weekend afterwards worrying: did I do my job properly? I know I did, but no-one's perfect all of the time," she added."I don't think I slept for the whole weekend." NHS 'needs policies' Ms d'Aquino said there were valid reasons for patients to record the audio of medical consultations - so they could listen back to the detail, for example. "The difficulty is that our phones have become so much a part of our day-to-day life that recording and sharing has become second nature," she added. Dean Rogers, the director of strategy at the SoR, is calling for NHS trusts to have clear policies in place that stop patients from filming without permission."As healthcare professionals, we need to think: does that recording breach the confidentiality of other patients? Does it breach our ability to deliver care?" he said."There are hospital trusts that have very good policies around patients taking photos and filming procedures but this is something all trusts need to have in place."Prof Meghana Pandit, co-national medical director at NHS England, said it was vital that, if patients want to record any part of NHS care, they discuss it with staff first and it remains for their personal use only."Recording other patients inadvertently and without their permission risks breaching patient confidentiality – the information and treatment provided to other patients on NHS premises should never be recorded, let alone posted to social media," she added.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
More than two thirds of cancer patients waiting over TWO MONTHS to start treatment in parts of England - how does YOUR area fare?
England's 'deadly' cancer treatment postcode lottery was today laid bare in a damning analysis revealing where patients are having to wait months for care. More than two thirds (69 per cent) of patients at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Cambridgeshire had to wait over 62 days to start treatment for their disease after an urgent referral from their GP in April. This was more than double the proportion waiting too long for cancer treatment nationally. By comparison, NHS guidelines state that 85 per cent of patients should start treatments like surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, within two months. Senior cancer doctors said the data highlights the 'frightening truth' that too many patients were experiencing fatal delays. Prompt treatment for cancer is considered critical, with every four weeks a patient is forced to wait, linked to a 10 per cent increase chance of death. Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust ranked second worst in the nation for speedy cancer treatment, with more than half (55 per cent) of patients having to wait at least two months. Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust followed, at 51 per cent of patients and Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust with 48 per cent of patients waiting too long. Joint fifth were Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust in Essex, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. A total of 47 per cent of cancer patients referred by their family doctor for signs of the disease had to wait too long to start treatment at these trusts. Nationally, around one in three cancer patients (30.1 per cent), over 8,000 people, had to wait over two months to start treatment. Reacting to the data top oncologist and co-founder of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign, Professor Pat Price, said: 'This data shows the frightening truth that a third of patients following an urgent GP cancer referral do not get their treatment on time. 'These deadly delays show that the Government needs to urgently invest in cancer treatments.' She added: 'It is still the case that there is a deadly postcode lottery when it comes to cancer treatments. 'For instance, in radiotherapy, despite some investment last year, around half of the cancer treatment machines for radiotherapy are spiralling towards their expiration date.' Despite the NHS target of 85 per cent, this goal hasn't been met since 2015. Rapid access to cancer treatment can boost patient survival as it reduces the chances of a tumour growing larger—which requires more extensive treatment— or the disease spreading to other parts of the body, a far more serious stage. At the opposite end of the scale, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust recorded the highest adherence to the target with 96 per cent of cancer patients starting treatment within two months. This was followed by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust which saw 92 per cent of cancer patients within the 62-day target. Both trusts are specialty hospitals meaning they will generally see fewer cancer patients than a normal NHS trust. The analysis was carried out by medical negligence law firm Patient Claim Line. The firm's senior litigation executive Michael Blakemore-Carson suggested delays could be devastating to patients and potentially costly to the NHS. 'If you have experienced delayed treatment, you could be entitled to make a claim for compensation,' he said. A Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust spokesperson said: We are sorry that too many cancer patients are waiting longer than they should. 'We are working collaboratively internally and with our partner hospitals to make sure referrals reach us earlier, so we can provide the very best, timely care.' A spokesperson for NHS Humber Health Partnerships, which represents Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust and Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, blamed the figures on rising cancer cases in the area. 'We are working hard to minimise delays to our patients who are waiting to start their cancer treatment, and I am sorry some people are waiting longer than we would like,' they said. 'However, we are seeing a striking growth in the number of referrals coming into our hospitals. To try to deal with this we are providing additional "one stop" sessions at weekends, thanks to the help of our medical, nursing and imaging staff.' Stephanie Lawton, chief operating officer at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust also said the trust was working to reduce waiting times for cancer patients. 'We are focusing on initiatives including additional clinical triage of all patient referrals, further diagnostic and outpatient capacity, and a review of our external pathways to support patients requiring onward referral to specialist centres,' she said. 'In some services, we are working on "one-stop" diagnostic capacity, so patients have all their investigations in one visit.' Christine Blanshard, chief medical Officer for Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, also said they were working to make improvements. 'Our priority is to provide the highest possible quality of patient care, and we appreciate how difficult it is for anyone waiting for cancer treatment,' she said. 'We are implementing an improvement plan focused on rapidly reducing cancer diagnosis and treatments times.' Kirsten Major, Chief Executive, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: Reducing the time patients wait for cancer treatment is a top priority and whilst we have more work to do, we have already reduced the wait time by five days following focused work to increase both staffing and capacity over the past year.' Other NHS data shows other cancer targets are struggling to meet ministers' ambitions. The Government has target that by March 2026, 80 per cent of all urgent cancer referrals should be either diagnosed or ruled out within 28 days. But the latest figures show this was only true for 76.7 per cent of patients in April, down from 78.9 per cent in March. Both figures are above the current target of 75 per cent of patients being told they have disease or have it ruled out within this time frame. Another target, that cancer patients should only wait a month from a decision to treat their cancer to starting that treatment was also missed. The NHS only managed to treat 91.3 per cent of cancer patients within 31 days. The target is 96 per cent. Oncologists—doctors who specialise in cancer care—have previously described the continuing failure for the NHS to meet its cancer treatment targets as a 'heartbreaking disaster'. Almost 400,000 cancer cases are diagnosed across the UK each year, with almost 170,000 deaths from the disease recorded per annum. Nearly half of all Britons—45 per cent of men and 43 per cent of women—are expected to be diagnosed with some form of cancer during their lifetime.
South Wales Argus
2 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Poll suggests support for better end-of-life care over assisted dying Bill
The polling, commissioned by a group opposed to assisted dying being legalised, 'blows apart the arguments that the public are desperate' for a change in the law, a campaigner claimed. Bill sponsor Kim Leadbeater said last week that MPs should not have to choose between supporting assisted dying or palliative care as it is not an 'either/or' conversation for dying people. She said palliative care and assisted dying 'can and do work side by side to give terminally-ill patients the care and choice they deserve in their final days', and urged MPs to support 'all options available to terminally ill people'. An amendment to the Bill, requiring the Health Secretary to publish an assessment of the availability, quality and distribution of palliative and end-of-life care one year after the Bill passing into law, could be voted on on Friday. Friday is also set to be the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill's third reading stage, which is likely to see the overall Bill voted on for the first time since November's historic yes vote, when a majority of 55 supported the principle of assisted dying for England and Wales. The latest polling, commissioned by Care Not Killing and carried out by British Polling Council member Whitestone, saw 2,089 UK adults surveyed online between May 30 and June 1. Respondents, who are said to have been weighted to be a representative sample, were told of concerns raised by the Royal Colleges of Physicians and Psychiatrists and the Association for Palliative Medicine about the Bill in its current form as well as opposition from disability campaigners. Campaigners gathered in Parliament Square earlier this month (James Manning/PA) In this context, they were asked about replacing the Bill with a plan to improve and invest in palliative care – to which 69% agreed, and about a Royal Commission being set up to consider and make recommendations for a holistic end-of-life and palliative care service – with which 61% agreed. Almost two thirds (65%) said the Government's priority should be sorting out palliative and social care before changing the law – down very slightly from 66% last year. Gordon Macdonald, chief executive of Care Not Killing, said: 'This major new poll blows apart the arguments that the public are desperate for a so-called assisted dying law. 'The public want the Government and MPs to focus on fixing the NHS and palliative care which they know are broken. After all one in four Brits who would benefit from palliative care aren't currently receiving it, while in many places services are piecemeal, part-time or facing cuts.' Former prime minister Gordon Brown (Lucy North/PA) It comes as former prime minister Gordon Brown repeated his opposition to assisted dying. Writing in the Guardian, he said: 'It has become clear that whatever views people hold on the principle, passing the terminally ill adults (end of life) bill into law would privilege the legal right to assisted dying without guaranteeing anything approaching an equivalent right to high-quality palliative care for those close to death.' He said MP's personal preferences 'cannot be separated off from the duties they have as members of a community to ensure that the way we treat the dying reflects the values of a decent, compassionate country'. He added: 'That should mean upholding the role of the medical professions as care-givers, and exclusively care-givers; avoiding the possibility of private profiteering by legal-medical consortiums which might well commercialise assisted dying as a lucrative business; safeguarding vulnerable people about whose fate the royal medical colleges have all expressed concern; preventing unacceptable coercive pressures that can be brought to bear on disabled people, and those who are incapacitated or mentally stressed; and thus showing that as a society we value life above death.' Dozens of Labour MPs called for Friday's overall vote to be delayed, asking for more time to scrutinise a Bill they brand as 'perhaps the most consequential piece of legislation that has appeared before the House in generations'. Writing to Commons leader Lucy Powell, they said: 'We implore you as the Leader of the House to allocate more Parliamentary time to the scrutiny of this Bill, the valid concerns that members have about its implementation, and the consequences it could have on vulnerable populations.' A Government spokesperson said: 'This Bill has been brought as a Private Members' Bill. The amount of time for debate is therefore a matter for the House.' Labour MP Kim Leadbeater is the sponsor of the Bill (Jordan Pettitt/PA) The Bill's sponsor, Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, has repeatedly stated that her proposed legislation has been strengthened since it was first introduced last year, insisting it is subject to robust safeguards. Medical staff are among some of the MPs who back the Bill. As it stands, the proposed legislation would allow terminally-ill adults in England and Wales, with fewer than six months to live, to apply for an assisted death, subject to approval by two doctors and a panel featuring a social worker, senior legal figure and psychiatrist. MPs are entitled to have a free vote on the Bill and any amendments, meaning they decide according to their conscience rather than along party lines. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer voted in favour of the Bill last year, but said the Government remains neutral on the issue. Both Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood voted against.
