Urgent warning over Ozempic ‘weight-loss’ drug being sold illegally on social media
DANGEROUS weight-loss drugs which can have serious side effects are being flogged on Facebook.
Black market listings offer Ozempic injections - designed for diabetics but hailed by celebs as a quick-fix for shedding pounds - for as little as £70.
Similar medicines Saxenda and Wegovy are also being sold on social media, targeted at those wanting to slim down.
The pre-filled pens contain the active ingredient semaglutide and are intended to be injected once a week to manage blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes.
They increase levels of incretins - a hormone - which helps the body produce more insulin when needed and reduce the amount of glucose produced by the liver.
They also suppress users' appetites - mimicking a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1, which is usually released after eating.
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As the medication makes people feel full, they tend to eat less and lose weight as a result.
Because of this, semaglutide has been hailed as a "wonder drug" by high-profile names including Elon Musk.
It is also rumoured to have helped Kim Kardashian fit into her Marilyn Monroe dress for last year's Met Gala.
Like all medicines, the jabs come with potential side effects - including sickness, bloating, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhoea.
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But experts say they can be particularly dangerous for people without diabetes or who are not overweight to begin with.
Studies show in rare cases semaglutide can cause pancreatitis, kidney function issues, thyroid C-cell tumours and medullary thyroid carcinoma.
Most people will also regain any weight they've lost after they stop taking the medication, research shows.
Selling prescription-only drugs like Ozempic is illegal and patients who want to ditch supplies they no longer need should take them to a pharmacy to be disposed of safely.
However, there is a growing trend of people using Facebook to cash in on patients who don't qualify on the NHS or can't afford to buy them from licensed websites.
Sold privately, a four-pack of semaglutide injections is available for as much as £179.99, but black market sellers are advertising them from between £70 and £135, the reports.
One person was even trying to peddle partially used medicine for £75, writing: "Anyone in central Scotland looking to buy pens?
"I have one unopened still in fridge and one half used, plus needles and sharps bin."
Dr Steve Taylor, GP spokesperson at Doctors’ Association UK, said doing so was illegal and could be dangerous.
"Without a doctor’s supervision, it is difficult to ensure the medication’s safety, effectiveness, and proper usage and the medication may interact negatively with other drugs or health conditions, leading to harmful side effects or complications," he added.
Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: "It’s a genuine threat to a patient’s safety if they are taking drugs that they have bought online without a prescription from a qualified medical professional, and it’s even more worrying if those drugs are being used for purposes that they are not intended to be used for.
"We would urge patients to consider the implications of buying drugs online using unverified websites – there is no way of knowing what they are buying is what they think it is, and this can have serious consequences for their health.
"Turning to unregulated sources of prescription medication without consultation incurs a real risk of adverse health effects."
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A spokesperson for Meta, which owns Facebook, said: "We don’t allow the sale of pharmaceutical drugs on Facebook and have removed the violating group brought to our attention."
If you're looking to lose weight safely, a nutritionist recently shared five simple tips he swears by.
What is Ozempic?
SEMAGLUTIDE, sold under the brand names Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, is a drug originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes and as an anti-obesity medication used for long-term weight management.
The weekly injection works by suppressing the appetite - mimicking a naturally occurring hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1, which is usually released after eating.
As a result patients feel fuller for longer, and reduce the number of calories they eat.
Side effects can include sickness, bloating, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhoea.
Other rare complications include gallbladder problems, kidney failure, serious allergic reaction and depression.
A study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found nausea and diarrhoea were the most common side-effects.
But these were "typically transient and mild-to-moderate in severity and subsided with time", researchers said.
Alongside the side effects, some charities have warned the drug could be dangerous for people at risk of developing disorders.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) guidance says the drug should only be offered to obese adults with at least one weight-related condition and a BMI of at least 35.
The weight-related conditions include type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, high blood pressure, unbalanced or unhealthy cholesterol levels, obstructive sleep apnoea and heart disease.