Losing the Prince of Darkness Ozzy Osbourne recently has brought the rest of his family members back into the celebrity spotlight. But how much do you know about the health issues the other stars of The Osbournes have had to face over the years?
Ozzy was dad to six kids in total. But it is Jack Osbourne and daughter Kelly Osbourne who reality TV fans are likely to be most familiar with.
Ozzy and Sharon’s son Jack is back on the box this weekend with Cooking With the Stars on ITV1. The series was filmed in advance of Ozzy’s recent passing.
Osbournes’ health issues: Jack’s MS battle
Jack Osbourne announced in June 2012 that he had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. He was just 26 at the time.
He noted he had experienced symptoms such as sight issues, numbness in his legs and problems with his bladder, bowel and stomach for several years.
Among the approaches he’s taken to combat his condition are vitamin supplements and stem cell therapy. He also made lifestyle changes including exercising regularly making changes to his diet. Jack has also expressed concerns about how he may decline with MS.
Going public with his condition, Jack noted about raising awareness: “I felt a weird obligation. I’m in the public eye, and I thought it would really benefit people.”
He added: “MS is very common and a lot more common than people think. A lot of people who are younger are nervous to let people know about it because of the stigma that comes along with it. I know a few people who keep it on the DL.”
Kelly’s addiction issues
Kelly Osbourne has been very open about her struggles with addiction.
According to reports, Kelly has indicated a drug habit stemmed from being given medication following tonsillitis as a teenager.
She has previously said Vicodin, prescribed to her by a doctor, led to her taking heroin. Kelly also suggested she switched to heroin because it was “cheaper” than other drugs.
Kelly reflected in 2021: “I then kept getting sick and I had a really bad case of tonsillitis. They ended up having to give me some crazy surgery, and then after that, they gave me Vicodin, and that was all I needed.”
She also claimed to move on to another painkiller, Percocet, after Vicodin.
Furthermore, according to online sources, Kelly also spent three stints in rehab in the 2000s for assistance with her painkiller addiction.
And Kelly has also said she was addicted to booze – suffering a relapse during the Covid pandemic after being sober for four years.
Meanwhile, she joked last year: “I’m hoping that I’ve embalmed myself so I don’t ever get cancer. I’m pickled from all the drugs and alcohol, for sure.”
Osbournes’ health issues: Sharon’s cancer diagnosis
Sharon Osbourne has also been put through the mill with her health. She has addressed issues such as experiencing depression, suffering bulimia and dramatic changes to her weight before now.
But Sharon has also endured a gruelling bouts of colon cancer.
She received her first devastating diagnosis of colon cancer in 2002. It spread to her lymph nodes. Previously speaking to Metal Hammer, Sharon said she continued working at the time “because I didn’t want my kids and my husband to know how sick I was. When you say ‘cancer’, everybody always thinks ‘death’.”
Everybody always thought it was a death sentence.
She added: “At that point, cancer wasn’t the same as it is now. So everybody always thought it was a death sentence and I didn’t want my kids to have fear constantly surrounding them. I didn’t want it.”
Brave Sharon went through chemotherapy – and went on to found the Sharon Osbourne Colon Cancer Program at Cedars Sinai Hospital in August 2004. She had reportedly been given a 33% survival prognosis beforehand.
But the shadow of cancer would return.
In early November 2012, Sharon revealed she had undergone a double mastectomy. It was a preventative approach, after she found out she had a gene that increases the risk of developing breast cancer.
“I’ve had cancer before and I didn’t want to live under that cloud: I decided to just take everything off,” she told Hello! magazine.
Sharon added: “For me, it wasn’t a big decision, it was a no-brainer.”
Read more: Ozzy Osbourne’s final gig ‘felt like a wake’ backstage: ‘He knew his days were numbered’
Cooking With the Stars is on ITV1 on Sunday August 3 at 7pm.
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