He now explains to patients how they could “eat themselves healthy”.
“I tell people ‘it’s absolutely not your fault – you’re hungry because you’re putting the wrong fuel in your body’,” he said.
About 60% of calories in the average Briton’s diet come from ultra-processed foods, which are low in nutrition, he said.
He added that his beliefs were a departure from traditional pharmaceutical practices.
“Too many people are on anti-depressants and anti-hypertensives because their blood pressure’s a bit high, and then a diabetes drug, and then coming in over the top is the new weight-loss jabs – you don’t even have to change your diet,” he continued.
Clinical trials by Cambridge University and University College London have shown that while effective for fat loss, more than 40% of the weight lost, external on the jabs is muscle and bone.
“What I’m seeing is women’s periods are stopping, hair is falling out… and they’re now at risk of osteopenia, external and sarcopenia, external,” said Phillips.
“In other words, if you lose bone and muscle, you’re hastening your demise, and you burn fewer calories.”
He added: “We get people off a lot of medication and we don’t make them feel judged in any way.
“We provide the information, and if that’s the path they want to take, we’re here to support them… it’s an obvious role for community pharmacies to play.”