{"id":489280,"date":"2026-06-12T13:08:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T13:08:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/489280\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T13:08:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T13:08:09","slug":"health-warning-issued-over-unauthorised-miracle-weight-loss-drug-sold-online","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/489280\/","title":{"rendered":"Health warning issued over unauthorised \u2018miracle\u2019 weight-loss drug sold online"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.newsbook.com.mt\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/12124606\/14974-803x535x0x3x803x530x1740598871.jpg\" data-caption=\"Creative Commons \" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"696\" height=\"459\" class=\"entry-thumb td-modal-image\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/14974-803x535x0x3x803x530x1740598871-696x459.jpg\"   alt=\"\" title=\"weight loss\"\/><\/a>Creative Commons<\/p>\n<p>Health authorities issued an urgent public warning after unregulated products claiming to contain the experimental weight-loss drug Retatrutide were found being sold online and through social media.<\/p>\n<p>The Superintendence of Public Health and the Malta Medicines Authority said in a joint statement that the substance is not authorised for public use anywhere in the world. No product containing Retatrutide has been approved for sale.<\/p>\n<p>The alert follows a growing international trend in which the unlicensed drug \u2013 still in Phase 3 clinical trials \u2013 is being promoted as a \u201cmiracle solution\u201d for weight loss on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Telegram. Sellers often direct buyers to encrypted messaging apps, and some have even run social media \u201cgiveaways\u201d offering the unapproved injections as prizes.<\/p>\n<p>Retatrutide, developed by Eli Lilly, is a novel \u201ctriple agonist\u201d that targets three appetite-regulating hormones. Early trials have shown impressive weight loss of up to 24%, but the drug remains investigational and has not been cleared by the FDA, EMA or any other regulator.<\/p>\n<p>Malta\u2019s authorities warned that products sold through unauthorised channels may be falsified, counterfeit, improperly stored or contaminated. Potential risks include adverse health effects, allergic reactions, toxicity, infections and other serious harm.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMembers of the public are strongly urged to purchase medicines only from licensed pharmacies,\u201d the statement said. It also advised avoiding any substance marketed as \u201cresearch\u201d, \u201cexperimental\u201d or \u201cnot for human consumption\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Similar warnings have been issued by UK regulators, who recently seized fake weight-loss pens worth over \u00a3250,000. TikTok and Instagram have removed numerous videos promoting the unapproved drug.<\/p>\n<p>Malta\u2019s authorities said enforcement action is under way to identify and withdraw such products from the market. Anyone suspecting illegal or unsafe products is urged to report them through official channels.<\/p>\n<p>Stay updated. Download the free app.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/apps.apple.com\/mt\/app\/newsbook\/id571996678\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"social-cta-app-store-button-bg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"margin: 0\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.newsbook.com.mt\/pub\/icons\/app-store.svg\" alt=\"Apple App Store\"\/><br \/>\n<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.vioside.Newsbook&amp;pli=1\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"social-cta-app-store-button-bg\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"margin: 0\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.newsbook.com.mt\/pub\/icons\/play-store.svg\" alt=\"Google Play Store\"\/><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Creative Commons Health authorities issued an urgent public warning after unregulated products claiming to contain the experimental weight-loss&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":489281,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[163,85,46,482],"class_list":["post-489280","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-medication"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489280","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=489280"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489280\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/489281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=489280"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=489280"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=489280"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}