Major high street pharmacy caught on camera giving skinny jabs to teen
페이지 정보
본문
A major high street pharmacy was caught on camera giving weight loss jab Wegovy to a teenager who lied about her age.
The shocking moment was captured during journalist Ellie Flynn's investigation into the culture around these drugs in the UK - and how easy it is to acquire them on the private market - for Channel 4's latest episode of Dispatches.
In Skinny Jab Scandal, which airs tonight, a 16-year-old undercover reporter easily buys Wegovy from Boots on two separate occasions by falsely stating she was 18.
Both times, she was asked only to verbally confirm her date of birth when she went to pick up her prescriptions in-person - even though Boots' policy states they will not prescribe skinny jabs to under-18s.
'No one checked her photo ID when she went to pick them up, nobody noticed that she looked young, nobody seemed concerned about the fact that this was a child picking up prescription medicine and had obviously falsified her details in order to get a hold of it,' Flynn told FEMAIL.
'Her GP wasn't contacted on either occasion,' she continued. 'It shows a real error in Boots system which can be potentially dangerous.'
Footage shared with FEMAIL revealed the first time Amber* applied for Wegovy on Boots' Online Doctor website was on January 9, 2025.
While filling out the application form, Amber used her real name, address, Hubet the contact details for her GP, and her real height and weight, and also included two body shots - one from the front and one from the side.
The shocking moment was captured during journalist Ellie Flynn's (above) investigation into the culture around these drugs in the UK - and how easy it is to acquire them on the private market - for Channel 4's latest episode of Dispatches
In Skinny Jab Scandal, which airs tonight, a 16-year-old undercover reporter Amber (above) easily buys Wegovy from Boots on two separate occasions by falsely stating she was 18
Both times, she was asked only to verbally confirm her date of birth when she went to pick up her prescriptions for Wegovy in-person - even though Boots' policy states they will not prescribe skinny jabs to under-18s
The form did not ask for any kind of photo identity documents.
Four days later, Amber found out she had been approved for the drugs and, on January 16, she went to the local Boots store to collect her prescription.
'We wanted to see what would happen if 16-year-old Amber collected the drugs in-person,' Flynn says in a clip from the episode.
Footage from the store shows Amber being asked only to confirm her birth date before she is handed her packet of Wegovy and given instructions on how to store it.
In early February, the pharmacy regulator - the General Pharmaceutical Council - introduced stricter rules on access to these skinny jabs.
Pharmacies are no longer allowed to prescribe these 'miracle' weight loss drugs without in-person or video consultations as well as access to their medical records.
Eight days after the new rules were announced, Amber returned to her local Boots pharmacy to pick up her second dose of Wegovy.
Like the first time, Amber had no problems at the counter after the pharmacist at the counter asked her to 'remind me of your date of birth'.
Footage from the store shows Amber being asked only to confirm her birth date before she is handed her packet of Wegovy and given instructions on how to store it
Pharmacies are no longer allowed to prescribe these 'miracle' weight loss drugs without in-person or video consultations as well as access to their medical records
When contacted by Channel 4, a representative for Boots said: 'Patient safety is our number one priority.
'We always strive to provide a high quality of care to patients including those whose weight is impacting their health.
'Although Wegovy is licensed for patients aged 12 and over, our policy is not to prescribe to under 18s.'
She used her own name, her own address, her own GP, her real height and weight - she would have been eligible for the drugs had she been 18, so we used photos of her - but put down an incorrect age for her that would have made her over the age of 18.
Last June, medics warned about the rise in the number of young, healthy women needing A&E care after taking these appetite-suppressing drugs bought online under false pretences.
Young women are believed to obtaining the drug via online pharmacies, who offer them at between £150 to £200 per month after providing false information about their appearance and health.
Medics, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, recently highlighted such case where a 'young girl' had ended up in A&E from taking the drug under these circumstances.
They said the patient attended A&E feeling 'feeling unwell, like she was going to pass out and couldn't stand up… she was really struggling to eat' according to the medic who spoke to the pharmacy website Chemist and Druggist.
Reflecting on her investigation into the rampant use of weight loss jabs among Britons, Flynn noted 'these drugs are a huge phenomenon unlike anything we've seen before'
She was reportedly not overweight 'at all' but had managed to secure a month's worth of Wegovy, the semaglutide formulation specifically for weight-loss, for about £150.
The girl, whose age was not disclosed, was treated for 'starvation ketoacidosis' a potentially life-threatening problem caused by extended fasting and where harmful substances called ketones build-up in the body.
Reflecting on her investigation into the rampant use of weight loss jabs among Britons, Flynn noted 'these drugs are a huge phenomenon unlike anything we've seen before'.
'A lot of people see them as lifestyle drugs, as a way of losing a bit of weight easily, everyone seems to want to get their hands on them.
'The contrast is that these are serious medications that should be prescribed and taken when you need them,' she continued.
Semaglutide medications, like Ozempic and Wegovy, were originally approved to treat Type-2 diabetes.
However, its popularity surged in 2021 after Hollywood celebrities and influencers alike advocated for its 'miracle' weight loss properties.
Today, Flynn said, 'you would be hard-pushed to find someone in the UK that doesn't know someone on these drugs'.
The new Dispatches episode comes after it was reported that over 80 Britons have died weight-loss and diabetes jabs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro
'The vast majority of those people are getting those on the private market,' the investigative journalist continued. 'A lot of them are people who maybe are not over the threshold, or not obese or suffering from any kind of co-morbidity, but just want to lose a bit of weight.
Read More
'Miracle' fat-busting jabs Ozempic and Wegovy have caused 3,000 Brits to fall ill
'I've heard time and time again people describe it as "cheaper than a gym membership" and I think that's the way people are seeing it.'
However, she warned there are real risks to taking these drugs without proper medical advice.
An A&E doctor revealed a massive surge in the number of patients reporting complications from using these drugs, Flynn added.
The new Dispatches episode comes after it was reported that over 80 Britons have died weight-loss and diabetes jabs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro.
On February 22, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency reported at least 22 fatalities linked to the medication up to the end of January.
A further 60 deaths were recorded for products aimed to help with Type 2 diabetes.
Nearly 400 people also required hospital treatment since the rollout of the products over the past few years.
Skinny Jab Scandal: Dispatches is available to watch and stream on Channel 4 at 8pm tonight (Tuesday 4th March)
Channel 4
The shocking moment was captured during journalist Ellie Flynn's investigation into the culture around these drugs in the UK - and how easy it is to acquire them on the private market - for Channel 4's latest episode of Dispatches.
In Skinny Jab Scandal, which airs tonight, a 16-year-old undercover reporter easily buys Wegovy from Boots on two separate occasions by falsely stating she was 18.
Both times, she was asked only to verbally confirm her date of birth when she went to pick up her prescriptions in-person - even though Boots' policy states they will not prescribe skinny jabs to under-18s.
'No one checked her photo ID when she went to pick them up, nobody noticed that she looked young, nobody seemed concerned about the fact that this was a child picking up prescription medicine and had obviously falsified her details in order to get a hold of it,' Flynn told FEMAIL.
'Her GP wasn't contacted on either occasion,' she continued. 'It shows a real error in Boots system which can be potentially dangerous.'
Footage shared with FEMAIL revealed the first time Amber* applied for Wegovy on Boots' Online Doctor website was on January 9, 2025.
While filling out the application form, Amber used her real name, address, Hubet the contact details for her GP, and her real height and weight, and also included two body shots - one from the front and one from the side.
The shocking moment was captured during journalist Ellie Flynn's (above) investigation into the culture around these drugs in the UK - and how easy it is to acquire them on the private market - for Channel 4's latest episode of Dispatches
In Skinny Jab Scandal, which airs tonight, a 16-year-old undercover reporter Amber (above) easily buys Wegovy from Boots on two separate occasions by falsely stating she was 18
Both times, she was asked only to verbally confirm her date of birth when she went to pick up her prescriptions for Wegovy in-person - even though Boots' policy states they will not prescribe skinny jabs to under-18s
The form did not ask for any kind of photo identity documents.
Four days later, Amber found out she had been approved for the drugs and, on January 16, she went to the local Boots store to collect her prescription.
'We wanted to see what would happen if 16-year-old Amber collected the drugs in-person,' Flynn says in a clip from the episode.
Footage from the store shows Amber being asked only to confirm her birth date before she is handed her packet of Wegovy and given instructions on how to store it.
In early February, the pharmacy regulator - the General Pharmaceutical Council - introduced stricter rules on access to these skinny jabs.
Pharmacies are no longer allowed to prescribe these 'miracle' weight loss drugs without in-person or video consultations as well as access to their medical records.
Eight days after the new rules were announced, Amber returned to her local Boots pharmacy to pick up her second dose of Wegovy. Like the first time, Amber had no problems at the counter after the pharmacist at the counter asked her to 'remind me of your date of birth'.
Footage from the store shows Amber being asked only to confirm her birth date before she is handed her packet of Wegovy and given instructions on how to store it
Pharmacies are no longer allowed to prescribe these 'miracle' weight loss drugs without in-person or video consultations as well as access to their medical records
When contacted by Channel 4, a representative for Boots said: 'Patient safety is our number one priority.
'We always strive to provide a high quality of care to patients including those whose weight is impacting their health.
'Although Wegovy is licensed for patients aged 12 and over, our policy is not to prescribe to under 18s.'
She used her own name, her own address, her own GP, her real height and weight - she would have been eligible for the drugs had she been 18, so we used photos of her - but put down an incorrect age for her that would have made her over the age of 18.
Last June, medics warned about the rise in the number of young, healthy women needing A&E care after taking these appetite-suppressing drugs bought online under false pretences.
Young women are believed to obtaining the drug via online pharmacies, who offer them at between £150 to £200 per month after providing false information about their appearance and health.
Medics, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, recently highlighted such case where a 'young girl' had ended up in A&E from taking the drug under these circumstances.
They said the patient attended A&E feeling 'feeling unwell, like she was going to pass out and couldn't stand up… she was really struggling to eat' according to the medic who spoke to the pharmacy website Chemist and Druggist.
Reflecting on her investigation into the rampant use of weight loss jabs among Britons, Flynn noted 'these drugs are a huge phenomenon unlike anything we've seen before'
She was reportedly not overweight 'at all' but had managed to secure a month's worth of Wegovy, the semaglutide formulation specifically for weight-loss, for about £150.
The girl, whose age was not disclosed, was treated for 'starvation ketoacidosis' a potentially life-threatening problem caused by extended fasting and where harmful substances called ketones build-up in the body.
Reflecting on her investigation into the rampant use of weight loss jabs among Britons, Flynn noted 'these drugs are a huge phenomenon unlike anything we've seen before'.
'A lot of people see them as lifestyle drugs, as a way of losing a bit of weight easily, everyone seems to want to get their hands on them.
'The contrast is that these are serious medications that should be prescribed and taken when you need them,' she continued.
Semaglutide medications, like Ozempic and Wegovy, were originally approved to treat Type-2 diabetes.
However, its popularity surged in 2021 after Hollywood celebrities and influencers alike advocated for its 'miracle' weight loss properties.
Today, Flynn said, 'you would be hard-pushed to find someone in the UK that doesn't know someone on these drugs'.
The new Dispatches episode comes after it was reported that over 80 Britons have died weight-loss and diabetes jabs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro
'The vast majority of those people are getting those on the private market,' the investigative journalist continued. 'A lot of them are people who maybe are not over the threshold, or not obese or suffering from any kind of co-morbidity, but just want to lose a bit of weight.
Read More
'Miracle' fat-busting jabs Ozempic and Wegovy have caused 3,000 Brits to fall ill
'I've heard time and time again people describe it as "cheaper than a gym membership" and I think that's the way people are seeing it.'
However, she warned there are real risks to taking these drugs without proper medical advice.
An A&E doctor revealed a massive surge in the number of patients reporting complications from using these drugs, Flynn added.
The new Dispatches episode comes after it was reported that over 80 Britons have died weight-loss and diabetes jabs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro.
On February 22, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency reported at least 22 fatalities linked to the medication up to the end of January.
A further 60 deaths were recorded for products aimed to help with Type 2 diabetes.
Nearly 400 people also required hospital treatment since the rollout of the products over the past few years.
Skinny Jab Scandal: Dispatches is available to watch and stream on Channel 4 at 8pm tonight (Tuesday 4th March)
Channel 4
- 이전글What Crypto Casino Sites Should Be Your Next Big Obsession 25.03.05
- 다음글top-mental-health-influencers-in-canada-to-follow-in-2024 25.03.05
댓글목록
등록된 댓글이 없습니다.