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RTÉ News
29-05-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
Spike in unauthorised weight loss drugs seized by Revenue, says HPRA
There has been a large increase in the number of unauthorised weight loss products seized by Revenue, according to the Health Products Regulatory Authority. In this month alone, 8,000 such products were seized, four times the quantity seized in all of last year, which was 2,000. HPRA has noticed a significant rise in online ads making false claims about medicines, devices, and cosmetics. Director of Compliance HPRA Grainne Power said the surge in the number of products is believed to be linked to "quite elaborate ads that look completely believable, but making numerous false claims about the medicines they're promoting". In particular, she said, "GLP-1 products that are presenting themselves as what are called 'micro-needle patches,' that they say contain the product." "These ads are using the HPRA's logo to falsely endorse these products," she said. GLP-1 products are primarily used as prescription medicines to treat diabetes and weight loss. The products are often marketed online as ozempic-type weight loss medicines. The active ingredient - semaglutide - is sold under the brand name Ozempic as an anti-diabetic medication used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Ozempic is approved for use in Ireland as a diabetes drug, but has not been listed for reimbursement as a treatment for obesity under the Drug Payments Scheme. Ozempic costs around €150 a month if you are taking it for weight-loss purposes and a rival product called Wegovy reportedly costs €220 a month. Ms Power said there are a couple of "red flags" that people should be aware of: "The first one is that the HPRA will never endorse a specific medicine in that way; our logo would never be used on any medicine. "And the second red flag is that it is not legal in Ireland to promote a prescription medicine to the general public at all." She said these are "two clear signals" to people to avoid being tempted by products being promoted in these ads. Ms Power said the consistent message remains that the only safe place to buy prescription medicines is from a pharmacy with a doctor's or prescriber's prescription. The 'medicines' do not "represent authorised products at all", she added. "They are products that don't exist, and particularly these GLP1 patches, they don't exist as an authorised medicine anywhere in the world, to the best of my knowledge." She said the HPRA has "no idea" what is in the products and "no confidence" about their safety. False medicine ads are being promoted through 'Facebook' and also through fake Facebook profiles that can purport to "represent well-respected" healthcare professionals or institutions in Ireland, said Ms Power. "When the ads pops up and you show an interest, you're then targeted, and if you click into it, what you are redirected to is an e-commerce platform outside the jurisdiction, and it is typically 'Shopify.'" When the HPRA finds the ads, it contacts Facebook and Shopify and requests them to remove the ads and their links. Companies have engaged with the HPRA and taken some of the material down, "but not all," and the authority continues to escalate its contact with "both of those organisations and continue to co-operate with them", said Ms Power. She added that HPRA has engaged at European level with its "peer organisations" to raise the matter more generally, as it is not just an Irish issue, it affects patients "all over Europe".
RTÉ News
30-04-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
Spike in sales of illegal weight loss drugs last year
There was a marked increased in the detection of weight loss type medicines, as more than a million units of illegal medicines overall were seized by the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) last year. The HPRA noted a spike in detention of GLP-1 products, which are primarily used as prescription medicines to treat diabetes and weight loss. GLP-1 is named after glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and the GLP-1 hormone is naturally released in the gastrointestinal tract in response to eating. Last year, 1,582 units of GLP-1 products were seized, compared to 568 units in 2023 and just 40 units in 2022. The products are marketed online as ozempic-type weight loss medicines and are becoming increasingly popular on the black market. The active ingredient - semaglutide - is sold under the brand name Ozempic as an anti-diabetic medication used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Ozempic is approved for use in Ireland as a diabetes drug, but has not been listed for reimbursement as a treatment for obesity under the Drug Payments Scheme. Ozempic costs around €150 a month if you are taking it for weight-loss purposes and a rival product called Wegovy reportedly costs €220 a month. The HPRA said research has shown that two thirds of people who go online to purchase these medicines do think about the risks, but one third still go ahead and purchase the products anyway. Anabolic steroids are very popular, especially among young male gym goers, who use them to bulk up, gain muscle or for aesthetic purposes. The HPRA said among the anabolics seized last year, they found vials that contained just water being sold as a steroid enhancer. Other seized products had just one of the active ingredients and some had none at all. The HPRA has warned that prescription medicines should only be purchased from authorised sources. Buying medicines sourced online in Ireland carries great risks to their health, it said, adding that there is no way of knowing if the product is genuine, if it contains the right active ingredient or if it has been tested and approved for human use. More than a million units of illegal medicines were seized by the HPRA in 2024, a 14% increase compared to numbers seized in 2023. HPRA Director of Compliance Grainne Power said the authority understands that "there are many reasons why members of the public seek out these illegally supplied products, such as privacy, ease of access, cost, or the belief that their doctor might not deem it appropriate medical use. "However, regardless of the reason, it is never worth taking a risk when it comes to your health. "We advise anyone who has purchased prescription medicines from unregulated sources to stop using them immediately and to contact their healthcare professional if they have any concerns about their health." The supply of online prescription medicines into and within Ireland is illegal. The HPRA said that last year, through enforcement activities, it disrupted online promotions by amending or shutting down 2,553 websites, e-commerce listings and/or social media pages. Two prosecution cases have been initiated, one relating to the importation or distribution of anabolic steroids and one relating to the importation or distribution of the weight loss product Saxenda. ''The seizure of over one million dosage units of illegal medicines last year highlights the persistent extent of the threats posed by falsified and unauthorised prescription medicines. "Our investigations and prosecutions have shown that those profiting from illegally supplied medicines have little or no regard for the health and safety of those who use them. While some websites may appear legitimate, many are simply fronts for unlawful activity, putting consumers at serious risk,'' Ms Power said. Announcing its annual enforcement data, the HPRA confirmed that it seized 1,000,984 dosage units of falsified and other illegal medicines in 2024. The data highlights that anabolic steroids, sedatives and erectile dysfunction products are consistently the most seized categories of medicines year on year. The HPRA seizure figures for 2024 include: Anabolic steroids - 203,088 units seized (up 20%) Sedative medicines - 146,686 units seized (up 15%) Erectile dysfunction - 119,289 units seized (up 12%) Analgesic medicines - 113,555 units seized (up 11%) The HPRA conducts monitoring to identify illegal online activity promoting prescription medicines and other substances to consumers. It routinely intervenes to disrupt online promotions through website closure, social media page removals and can initiate prosecution cases where it considers that there is a significant risk to public health, or where there are persistent non-compliances.
