The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has urged people not to buy fake weight loss injections \u2013 as shortages of Ozempic are expected to continue into next year.<\/p>\n
The association warned of a possible \u201cexplosion in the unlicensed sale of medication online\u201d and said people were risking their health by purchasing Ozempic and Wegovy (semaglutide) without proper checks.<\/p>\n
Ozempic is available on the NHS for people with type two diabetes, while Wegovy can be prescribed for weight loss via specialist weight management services, with strict criteria around who can get the drugs.<\/p>\n
But the jabs have exploded in popularity, with social media showing before and after pictures of fat loss, and some celebrities have endorsed their use.<\/p>\n
Ozempic, made by Novo Nordisk<\/strong>, helps people with type two diabetes regulate their blood sugar levels but its ability to suppress appetite has also led to people using it to lose weight.<\/p>\n Pharmacists are seeing a shortage of the drug, fuelled by high demand \u2013 plus the fact some medics are prescribing it off-label for obese people.<\/p>\n This has led to a shortage for those with diabetes, while also fuelling a rise in counterfeit jabs.<\/p>\n Risk rising due to \u2018precarious state of supply\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n The NPA, which represents more than 5,000 independently-run community pharmacies, is urging patients to speak to their pharmacist or GP instead of buying medicines online from sellers who are not registered and regulated in the UK.<\/p>\n Nick Kaye, chairman of the NPA, said that pharmacists remain \u201cdeeply concerned\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cStocks of Ozempic are very depleted in community pharmacies in the UK and it is important that these remain prioritised for those in the most clinical need,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cGiven the precarious state of supply of this and other vital medication, there is a much greater risk of people looking to order in supplies from disreputable online vendors.<\/p>\n \u201cWegovy stocks aren\u2019t too bad at the moment, it\u2019s Ozempic that is problematic.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been told those stocks aren\u2019t going to come back in in 0.25(mg), 0.5mg or 1mg doses until 27 December,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the current projected date from the manufacturers themselves.<\/p>\n \u201cIn all of our experience, it\u2019s much less likely to be earlier than that date and much more likely to be later.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018We really worry about the fakes\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n People often start Ozempic on the lowest dose of 0.25mg before moving up through the levels if needed.<\/p>\n In January, the Department of Health and Social Care told healthcare providers not to prescribe the drugs off-label for weight loss, and said existing stock must be reserved for patients with type 2 diabetes.<\/p>\n It said \u201csupply issues have been caused by an increase in demand for these products for licensed and off-label indications\u201d and supply is \u201cnot expected to return to normal until at least the end of 2024\u201d.<\/p>\n Mr Kaye added: \u201cWe really worry about the fakes within the supply chain.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople want to access these drugs and when they can\u2019t because they\u2019re out of stock, they can end up going elsewhere.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the UK, we do have regulated and safe online supply in places.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not saying all online [sales] should be banned but we want to make sure it\u2019s the right type of organisation and accredited.\u201d<\/p>\n Listen above then tap here to follow the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts <\/strong><\/p>\n Unauthorised sales \u2018could be dangerous\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n Mr Kaye said people can do checks to see if an online provider is registered and regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council or Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n The NPA also wants to see a reintroduction of rules that make it mandatory for a list of regulated online UK medicine sellers to be publicly available.<\/p>\n In June, the World Health Organisation issued a medical product alert over fake semaglutide stocks detected in Brazil, the UK and the US.<\/p>\n It said there have been increasing reports of false semaglutide since 2022.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the US Food and Drug Administration has warned against people overdosing on the drugs, with reports of some people suffering severe nausea, vomiting, headache, dehydration, pancreatitis and gallstones.<\/p>\n A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: \u201cWe strongly advise the public not to buy regulated medicines from unauthorised online retailers or beauty salons as they could be dangerous.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency continuously works to identify those unlawfully trading in medicines and will use its powers to take appropriate enforcement action, including, where necessary, prosecuting those who put people\u2019s health at risk.<\/p>\n \u201cSeparately, we are taking action to tackle the obesity crisis head on \u2013 shifting our focus from treatment to prevention \u2013 which will ease the strain on the NHS and helping people to live well for longer.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has urged people not to buy fake weight loss 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