{"id":354464,"date":"2026-01-06T03:21:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T03:21:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/354464\/"},"modified":"2026-01-06T03:21:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T03:21:13","slug":"emergency-hospital-cases-linked-to-weight-loss-jabs-surge-60-with-three-deaths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/354464\/","title":{"rendered":"Emergency hospital cases linked to weight-loss jabs surge 60% with three deaths"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Emergency hospital treatment for suspected side-effects from weight-loss injections has surged by 60 per cent, with three deaths now reported.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/topic\/nhs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:NHS;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">NHS<\/a> doctors recorded 133 suspected cases requiring hospital care in the first 11 months of 2025 &#8211; a dramatic jump from 83 during the whole of 2024.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The shocking figures, obtained through a Freedom of Information request by The Sun to the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency, reveal the growing toll of the slimming jab phenomenon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Of those treated for suspected reactions to medications including Mounjaro, Wegovy and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/topic\/ozempic\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Ozempic;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Ozempic<\/a>, 106 cases were classified as serious while 24 were deemed non-serious.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The alarming trend marks a sharp escalation from previous years &#8211; doctors logged just 20 suspected side-effect cases in 2023, while 2022 saw only seven.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Thousands more incidents have been reported directly to the MHRA through online channels.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">An estimated 1.5 million people purchased weight-loss injections privately last year, fuelling concerns about inadequate regulation of the booming market.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The NHS only prescribes the medications to patients who meet strict criteria, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/topic\/obesity\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:obesity;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">obesity<\/a> combined with conditions such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/topic\/diabetes\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:diabetes;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">diabetes<\/a> or high blood pressure.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Known side-effects of the injections range from digestive problems like diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting to more serious complications including pancreatitis, gallstones and bone fractures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Several high-profile figures have spoken out about their experiences with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/topic\/drugs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:drugs;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">drugs<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Model Lottie Moss, 27, was rushed to hospital suffering seizures after taking Ozempic.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Singer Robbie Williams, 51, blamed Mounjaro for causing vision problems, while former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, 61, experienced severe nausea and vomiting.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Weight-loss expert Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Independent Pharmacies Association, warned the crisis could escalate further.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">She said: &#8220;I suspect this problem will only get worse. There has to be better regulation or more people will get ill and there will be more deaths.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro belong to a class of medications known as GLP-1 receptor agonists.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">They mimic a natural hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1, which is released in the gut after eating.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The injections work by slowing down how quickly the stomach empties, helping people feel fuller for longer and reducing appetite.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">They also affect the brain&#8217;s hunger signals and can help regulate blood sugar levels, which is why some were originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The medications are typically administered once weekly through a pre-filled injection pen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Emergency hospital treatment for suspected side-effects from weight-loss injections has surged by 60 per cent, with three deaths&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":354465,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[136518,56250,59,102,136519,13886,7500,56,54,55,4405],"class_list":["post-354464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-emergency-hospital","tag-freedom-of-information-request","tag-gb","tag-health","tag-hospital-care","tag-medications","tag-side-effects","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-weight-loss"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=354464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/354465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=354464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=354464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=354464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}