NHS delay to tackle weight loss ‘leads to patients buying risky fat shots’, top GP warns
The long wait for NHS weight loss services is causing patients to buy potentially dangerous jabs online, the country’s top GP has warned.
Professor Kamila Hawthorne, president of the Royal College of GPs, said she had “serious concerns” about medicines sold by unregulated retailers.
She also urged caution towards cheaper alternatives to pre-filled injection pens, which may require patients to prepare some of the medicine themselves at home.
Even those who buy the jabs from registered online pharmacies risk missing out on vital monitoring and care, she said.
Professor Hawthorne urged patients to consult a doctor before taking weight loss drugs.
She said: ‘If you’re facing a two-year wait and you want to lose weight now… you might decide you’re just going to take care of it yourself.
“We have serious concerns about that because you don’t always know the source of the medicines you buy unless they come from an accredited company that is well regulated, and some of these places are not fully regulated.
‘I would definitely suggest that you come and talk to your doctor or practice nurse about what you are planning to do and get them to help you. Maybe they know ways to help you that you haven’t thought of yet.’
Delays in NHS weight loss services are causing patients to turn to potentially dangerous jabs online, a top doctor has warned. Pictured: Ozempic injection pens
Around 500,000 people in Britain have been prescribed weight loss shots, but only five percent are receiving them from the NHS (file photo)
Professor Kamila Hawthorne warned that even patients who get medicines from registered online pharmacies risk missing out on vital monitoring and care (file photo)
Around 500,000 people in Britain have been prescribed weight-loss jabs, data shows, but only 5 per cent are estimated to be receiving them from the NHS.
The two available on the NHS are known as Wegovy and Saxenda. Ozempic, which contains the same ingredient as Wegovy, is used by the NHS to treat type 2 diabetes.
According to the Obesity Health Alliance, some patients are asked to wait up to five years for specialist weight management support.
In parts of the country, some overburdened services have closed their waiting lists completely.
The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency said buying the drugs online is extremely risky, suggesting criminals will go to ‘great lengths’ to make their business appear authentic.
Their products could contain “toxins and other ingredients that could cause real harm,” it warned.
Both warnings come after the Mail revealed how easy it is to buy jabs online, even if you are a healthy weight, due to lax regulations.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health said patients ‘who need treatment most will be given treatment first’, but added: ‘We recognize that these medicines are not a substitute for good diet and exercise and as part of our 10- annual health plan we will shift the focus of healthcare, from disease to prevention.’