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<\/p>\nCreated: Oct 21, 2026 04:45 PM<\/p>\n
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Online medication concerns: Ricky Brathwaite, chief executive of the Bermuda Health Council (Photograph supplied)<\/p>\n
Consumers are being urged to exercise caution when purchasing medicines, injectable peptides and other health and wellness products online, through social media or from unverified suppliers.<\/p>\n
From weight-loss injections to products promising faster recovery, muscle growth and anti-ageing benefits, the Bermuda Health Council has sounded the alarm over substances that are becoming increasingly easy to purchase.<\/p>\n
Ricky Brathwaite, chief executive of the council, said: \u201cWe\u2019ve been discussing these concerns for some time now, and rather than seeing the problem go away, we\u2019re seeing more of these products becoming readily available.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople may be purchasing and using substances without any real assurance of what\u2019s in them, whether they\u2019re safe or whether they even work.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of these products are not specifically addressed in our existing regulatory schedules, creating challenges for oversight and consumer protection.\u201d<\/p>\n
The council cited one recent example as retatrutide, an experimental weight-loss medicine still undergoing clinical trials.<\/p>\n
Despite not being approved for general medical use, products claiming to contain retatrutide are already being sold online and through other outlets.<\/p>\n
Mr Brathwaite said he \u201cunderstood\u201d why people would be tempted to purchase medicines this way.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cWith the cost of living and healthcare being what they are, finding a product online or overseas at a fraction of the price can seem like a very practical solution.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone might travel abroad, discover that a medicine appears much cheaper and decide to order it themselves rather than seeking care when they return to Bermuda. We understand those pressures, and we aren\u2019t here to judge those decisions.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the last thing we want is to remain silent while someone unknowingly puts their health at risk and suffers a serious outcome that might have been prevented.\u201d<\/p>\n
The council said it was particularly concerned about products labelled \u201cfor research use only\u201d or \u201cnot for human consumption\u201d that are nevertheless being promoted.<\/p>\n
Consumers were encouraged to ask:<\/p>\n
\u2022 What am I buying? Is it an approved medicine or an experimental substance?<\/p>\n
\u2022 Where did it come from? Is the manufacturer or supplier reputable and verifiable?<\/p>\n
\u2022 Has it been tested? Is there reliable evidence of its quality, safety and effectiveness?<\/p>\n
\u2022 Is it right for me? Have I discussed it with a registered healthcare professional?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Created: Oct 21, 2026 04:45 PM Online medication concerns: Ricky Brathwaite, chief executive of the Bermuda Health Council…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":653760,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[294146,163,294147,85,46,482],"class_list":["post-653759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-bermuda-health-council","tag-health","tag-health-and-beauty-product","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-medication"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/653759","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=653759"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/653759\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/653760"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=653759"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=653759"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=653759"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}