Advertising regulator launches nine investigations into weight loss jab ads

Nine investigations into weight loss jab adverts have been launched by the UK advertising regulator, which has raised concerns about the sheer volume of law-breaking involved in targeting the public with the drugs.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) told The Independent it now has nine high-priority investigations underway into whether ads in various online media are promoting prescription-only medicines (POMs) in breach of its rules and the law.

Issues being probed include the use of unbranded injection or pen images, as well as claims such as “weight loss injections” and “Obesity Treatment Jab".

The ASA described the number of investigations running in parallel on the same topic as “significant” and said that tackling the issue is a “priority”.

Health secretary Wes Streeting has warned that the drugs “should not be taken to help get a body beautiful picture for Instagram” and must be treated as “serious medicines”. Drugs for weight management “should only be used by those tackling obesity,” he added.

The pharmacy regulator has now tightened prescription rules to prevent weight-loss medicines from being supplied “inappropriately”, with people now no longer able to get the drugs after completing a simple online questionnaire.

Groups including the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) had been calling for tougher rules after they learnt of people being wrongly prescribed the drugs without thorough checks, including some who already had a low body weight or who previously had eating disorders.

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Source: The Independent, 12 February 2025