More than one in 10 women are taking weight-loss jabs, survey finds

More than one in 10 women are taking weight-loss jabs, research has suggested.

Some 11 per cent of women aged 30 to 75 said they were taking a weight-loss jab, a survey by Juniper, a digital weight-loss service, found. Extrapolating the results across the UK would mean that about two million of the almost 20 million women within the age group are using the drugs.

The injections, which include semaglutide, known by brand names Ozempic and Wegovy, have been made popular by famous faces including Elon Musk and Boris Johnson.

But concerns have been raised about people—and young women in particular—not eligible for them under NHS rules obtaining them privately.

Lottie Moss, the 26-year-old half-sister of Kate Moss, was taken to hospital after the jabs made her violently ill when she used them despite being a healthy weight.

And health authorities have been forced to issue safety warnings about fake pens being distributed. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has urged people to be aware of fake pharmacy websites and social ­media posts offering the medicines without a prescription. The regulator said ­criminals would go to great lengths to make their businesses appear authentic and the products that they sell could ­contain “toxins and other ingredients that could cause real harm”.

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Source: The Telegraph, 15 January 2025