Fat jabs linked to almost two deaths per week as medical doctors problem black market warning
The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency said the figures do not mean that weight-loss injections caused the deaths, only that they may have played a part
Deaths are being linked to fat jbs(Image: Getty Images)
Fat jabs are being linked to nearly two deaths a week across the UK, a new report has said.
Official figures show weight-loss injections may be involved in 168 deaths, up 62 since June last year. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) revealed the data in its Yellow Card adverse events reporting system.
But the figures do not mean that the injections, now being used by over 1.5 million people across the UK, caused the deaths – only that they may have played a part. One death was linked to the use of Retatrutide, which is not approved for use in the UK and is likely to have been bought on the black market.
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Most of the weight-loss jabs are prescribed privately through pharmacies and GPs. But studies suggest 40% are being bought online without a prescription and others obtained from family and friends.
The rising death toll comes as the Advertising Standards Authority reports hundreds of complaints about online drugs being advertised without vital health supervision for patients. Complaints soared from 124 in 2023 to 492 in 2025.
The deaths prompted the MHRA to review all UK fatality reports but it confirmed that, “no new safety concerns were identified during this review that we are not already aware of”. But it warned patients to only take the weight-loss jabs under the supervision of a health professional qualified to prescribe them.
It said: “As we have outlined in our guidance for patients, these are powerful medicines that should only be prescribed by a healthcare professional after a consultation.” The MHRA said it continued to monitor all reported adverse side-effects and deaths and urged health professionals and the public to continue to report them.
Dr Alison Cave, MHRA chief safety officer, said: “Patient safety is our top priority and no medicine would be approved unless it met our expected standards of safety, quality and effectiveness. Our role is to continually monitor the safety of medicines during their use, including GLP-1 medicines – injectable weight-loss drugs.
“We have robust, safety monitoring and surveillance systems in place for all healthcare products. On the basis of the current evidence, the benefits of GLP-1 medicines outweigh the potential risks when used for the licensed indications.
“The decision to start, continue or stop treatments should be made jointly by patients and their doctor, based on full consideration of the benefits and risks.”
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