Four adverts for weight-loss pills, including one on London buses with the slogan: “The weight is over”, have been found in breach of the advertising code.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) published rulings on Wednesday that found the ads promoted oral prescription-only pills, even though they did not name them directly. The Voy brand has previously said its “The weight is over” campaign was for an over-the-counter dietary supplement.
Two prescription weight-loss pills, Wegovy and Foundayo, were approved for use in the UK earlier this year. An investigation by The Observer revealed last month how prescription diet pills were being promoted with “buy now, pay later” credit, discounted prices and loyalty points.
The ASA rulings were made against two ads from Voy: “The weight is over” campaign, and an ad with the image of a pill and the words: “Start your journey today”. Two further rulings were made against ads from MedExpress, which promoted “new weight loss tablets”, and Juniper, which stated: “The weight loss pill is here”.
Advertising rules state that prescription-only medicines cannot be advertised to the public. Under the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, it is also an offence to publish an advert that is likely to lead to the use of a prescription-only medicine.
The ASA rulings make clear a medicine does not need to be named for an advert to be understood to be promoting a prescription-only drug. UK medical watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) says it is tackling marketing that may put public health at risk.
Julian Beach, MHRA executive director of operations, said: “MHRA is clear in its message that medicines are not ordinary consumer goods and must not be marketed as such.”
Dr Earim Chaudry, chief medical officer of Voy, said: “We actioned withdrawal of the adverts while the investigation was under way and will not run it again. We co-operated fully with the ASA throughout.”
A MedExpress spokesperson said: “The advert in question was identified following routine internal review before we were contacted by the ASA and the advert was removed from all platforms.”
In response to the ASA, Juniper said it had reviewed the ad in light of new guidance it had become aware of before the ruling, and it had been withdrawn.