‘Black market’ Botox scars women for life

Practitioners with no professional medical qualifications use social media to target women and girls, an investigation by undercover Times reporters has found.

The medicines regulator has begun an investigation after undercover Times reporters found beauticians offering to inject women with “black market” Botox, putting them at risk of being disfigured for life.

Practitioners with no professional medical qualifications used social media to target women and girls, suggesting the treatments were safe and would enhance their looks. Many used products that have not gone through safety checks in Britain. Reporters confirmed that at least three practitioners advertising facial injections on social media sites were using cheap versions of Botox that are not licensed in the UK.

Campaigners say they are receiving increasing reports of disfigurements such as permanent facial scarring and large sores caused by injections with unlicensed versions of Botox, often carried out in people’s homes and at beauty salons.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said it was reviewing the findings and would “take appropriate regulatory action where any non-compliance is identified”.

Sajid Javid, the health secretary, said the practices uncovered were “totally unacceptable” and officials were looking into whether legal changes were needed “to ensure no one is harmed”.

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Source: The Times, 2 February 2022