A shortage of weight loss medication has led to experts warning individuals not to buy products advertised to have the same results due to the risk of serious illness.
Across the pond, the United Kingdom’s National Pharmacy Association (NPA) is expressing concern about “fakes in the supply chain” and said it is “really worried” about people who cannot access safe drugs and decide to buy similar products online.
The problematic substances are said to imitate the impact of Ozempic, a common prescription drug used for weight loss and to treat type 2 diabetes. But a worldwide shortage of the medication has led to what experts are calling an “explosion” of imitation jabs that could cause serious harm to patients.
The NPA is encouraging those who need the medication to consult physicians and pharmacists prior to buying imitation drugs, and to avoid buying from providers who are not regulated. The shortage resulted from a rise in off-label prescriptions, which occurred once the properties of the Ozempic drug were publicized.
Novo Nordisk, the drug’s manufacturer, then launched a new drug called Wegovy—in essence, an alternative weight loss prescription that contains the same main ingredient as Ozempic, which is semaglutide. However, the supply and demand challenges have not yet subsided in countries like the UK and the US, both of which have high rates of obesity among citizens.
Shortages of Ozempic—which is critical for some patients who have type 2 diabetes and need the drug to manage abnormal blood sugar levels—are expected to last into 2025, causing greater concern that more off-label drugs will be bought.
According to the NPA’s chairman, Nick Kaye, pharmacists “remain deeply concerned” about the reaction of patients who are unable to obtain Ozempic and turn to the “unlicensed sale of medication online.” He added that stocks of the drug in 1mg, 0.5 mg, and 0.25mg are not going to be available before December 27.
The warning from the NPA comes just over a month after the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a similar message warning citizens in some countries—including the UK and the US—about “falsified” medications presented as Ozempic alternatives.
