January 19th 2025.
In the month of November, there were nearly 18,000 reported side effects that caught the attention of many. However, there was one particular issue that caused great concern among health professionals - fake injections being sold online. These counterfeit weight-loss drugs have caused hundreds of people to be hospitalized due to severe side effects.
According to data from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, there were 118 hospitalizations in November alone. This brings the total number of cases to almost 400 in the past six years since the drugs semaglutide and tirzepatide, also known as Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Saxenda, were introduced by the NHS. Unfortunately, there has even been one reported death linked to tirzepatide, sold under the brand name Wegovy.
One such case was that of Susan McGowan, a beloved nurse who had been working at University Hospital Monklands in Airdrie for over 30 years. Susan had purchased a Mounjaro injection from an online pharmacy and experienced severe stomach issues and sickness after receiving her second dose. Tragically, she passed away two weeks after her first dose. Her death certificate listed the use of prescribed tirzepatide as a contributing factor, alongside multiple organ failure, septic shock, and pancreatitis.
Despite an estimated half a million people in the UK using these weight-loss drugs, only 5% of them are being prescribed by the NHS. Many of those who have experienced adverse effects had purchased the drugs online or through social media, rather than obtaining them through a pharmacy with a valid NHS prescription.
One such person is Shannon Flannery, who spent four days in the emergency room after purchasing an appetite-suppressing drug from what she believed was a "safe seller" on Instagram. Another case is that of Paige Roberts, who suffered from severe vomiting after using black market weight-loss injections. Despite her GP recommending weight loss to help with her health issues, Paige was unable to get a prescription due to her low weight. She resorted to purchasing the injections online, spending £80 on four pre-filled syringes, which the MHRA specifically warns against using.
Lynsay McAvoy, a 42-year-old beautician, had a harrowing experience after using injections she bought online. Despite weighing only 51kg, she experienced a severe allergic reaction, with her tongue swelling and her eyes burning until they were bloodshot. She eventually passed out and dislocated her jaw after banging her head against a wall. The MHRA has warned that these "fake" weight-loss drugs may not even contain semaglutide, as advertised, but instead, they could be harmful insulin.
The use of these counterfeit drugs has resulted in some people being hospitalized with hypoglycemic shock and coma due to extremely low blood sugar levels. Even those who are using legitimate weight-loss drugs are not safe from side effects, with gastrointestinal issues and dehydration being the most commonly reported problems. In more severe cases, patients have experienced life-threatening complications such as seizures, bowel obstruction, and pancreatitis. While these occurrences are rare, they still affected over 17,000 people in November alone, out of the 500,000 who take these drugs.
Side effects are not uncommon in tested and approved medications like Mounjaro, but the growing issue of fake drugs sold online has raised concerns among health professionals. Dr. Vicky Price, president-elect of the Society for Acute Medicine, has expressed worry over the increasing number of patients being admitted to the hospital with complications from these new weight-loss drugs they had purchased online. She stresses the need for urgent regulation and control of access to these drugs to prevent further harm.
Despite the concerns raised by health professionals and the public, the regulators and producers assure the safety of these drugs. Dr. Alison Cave, the chief safety officer of the MHRA, which approved the drug as a weight-loss aid in 2023, stated that no medicine would be approved unless it met their expected standards of safety, quality, and effectiveness. The pharmaceutical company Lilly, which produces Mounjaro, also reassures the public that they continuously monitor and evaluate the safety of their medicines. They highlight that Mounjaro was approved after extensive assessment of its benefits and risks, and they provide regulators with updated information to ensure the safety of their products.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
