Weight-loss jabs 'may need to be taken for life'

WEIGHT-LOSS jabs may have to be used for many years if the long-term benefits to patients and the NHS are to be realised, experts have said.

- RON MINCHIN

The drugs are sold under brand names like Mounjaro and Wegovy and work by reducing food cravings.

Obese patients can currently be prescribed the jabs on the NHS after being referred to specialist weight-loss clinics, which are usually located in hospitals.

Hundreds of thousands of people also access the medication privately at pharmacies.

There have been warnings about buying potentially unsafe jabs online from unregulated retailers and potentially missing out on wraparound support.

Experts said the jabs should not be seen as the first option in weight loss and should be used in conjunction with lifestyle changes, such as healthier eating more healthily and increasing exercise.

Professor Graham Easton, a GP who has been using weight-loss jabs himself, said: "I think it’s a major issue about the proper funding and resourcing of not only the GPs in the surgeries but also the wraparound care we talked about.