Latest news with #NatashaMajor
Wales Online
20 hours ago
- Health
- Wales Online
'I became pregnant while using weight-loss jabs - despite being on contraceptive pill'
'I became pregnant while using weight-loss jabs - despite being on contraceptive pill' Natasha Major was astounded when she found out as she had previously been trying for two years for a second child without success Natasha Major and her partner (Image: Kennedy News and Media ) A mum is warning women after falling pregnant while using 'skinny jabs' - despite being on the pill. Natasha Major bought the Mounjaro injections online in April to help her lose weight to become more healthy and confident before trying for her third baby. But the mum-of-two was stunned to discover she was pregnant just six weeks later despite taking the contraceptive pill each morning. The 26-year-old has polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), which makes her periods irregular, meaning she tried for two years to have her second child, so is 'baffled' how it happened. Recent studies show that Mounjaro could 'reduce the effectiveness of oral contraceptives in overweight people who are advised to use non-oral forms', according to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. Natasha never knew the injections could potentially reduce the effectiveness of her birth control and as soon as she discovered she was pregnant immediately stopped using the jabs. Now she wants to warn other women to take necessary precautions. Natasha, from Hitchin, Hertfordshire, said: "I thought 'there's no way, how can I have PCOS which gives me struggles with conceiving and also be taking contraception on top of that. How can I fall pregnant?' Natasha Jones bought the Mounjaro injections online in April to help her lose weight to become more healthy and confident before trying for another baby (Image: Kennedy News and Media ) "I have PCOS so I have really irregular periods and nothing is regular so that's why I started taking the contraceptive pill on top of not wanting to have a baby right now. Me and my partner, Liam, have two children already and always knew we'd love one more but I am overweight. Article continues below "Being overweight and pregnant makes it difficult. I knew I didn't want to fall pregnant now but maybe in two or three years we could start trying. I've always struggled with my weight, dieting and trying to get to a good size and maintaining it. "I wanted to be healthy and more confident and also so I could go on to have a healthier pregnancy in the future. I hoped I'd lose the weight so I went online and ordered the Mounjaro injections. "I'd only done it for two weeks before falling pregnant. Every morning at the same time I take it. I wasn't taking it at the wrong time as I know stuff like that can affect how effective the pill is." Natasha had taken her sixth weight loss injection on the morning of May 6. She then took an ovulation test that same day that came back darker than usual, so she decided to take a pregnancy test just in case, which came back positive so she stopped taking the jabs. Natasha said: "We weren't planning it so at first I was in disbelief. It really baffled me. When I was trying for my second daughter it took two years and the entire two years I was taking ovulation tests daily for months and I never, ever got a positive. "Then there was more panic with taking the Mounjaro. I was like 'oh my goodness, something might go wrong or there might be something wrong with the baby or I might miscarry'. I rang the GP and they just said to me 'we don't have anything to tell you, you need to ring 111'. They pretty much said the same thing, 'there's absolutely no information on it'. "All they said was 'if you start bleeding, you're probably miscarrying and to stop taking the Mounjaro'. I had that in my head anyway that I wouldn't carry on taking it." Now nine weeks pregnant, Natasha underwent an early baby scan due to her PCOS where doctors confirmed her baby is healthy. Natasha said: "I am a lot happier now. I wasn't unhappy at first but it was just a shock that took over. "I'm quite fortunate that I do want to be a mum again. Having a baby for me is great and we can have it now rather than in three or four years. There's still that constant (worry that) I was on (the weight loss jabs) and there were no studies for that. "Until I've got that baby and they are fine and healthy and everything's gone smoothly, I'll still have that feeling in the back of my mind. I'm quite lucky I took that ovulation test because I wouldn't have known and I would've carried on with the Mounjaro and that could have caused a lot more problems." After her shock discovery, Natasha wants to spread awareness of the potential effects weight loss jobs have on oral contraception. Natasha said: "I don't remember reading anywhere or it wasn't made clear to me that Mounjaro can dilute your contraceptive pill and to take other precautions if you're not wanting a baby. "There's a lot of people that really don't know that. It's just important that you're aware and not put in that position where you have to make a decision about whether you're going to continue a pregnancy, or have that anxiety throughout the entire time that something could go wrong because you've taken that medication." A spokesman from Eli Lilly, the drug firm that makes Mounjaro, said: "Patient safety is Lilly's top priority, and we actively engage in monitoring, evaluating, and reporting safety information for all our medicines. "The Summary of Product Characteristics for Mounjaro (tirzepatide) explains that tirzepatide "has the potential to impact the rate of absorption of concomitantly administered oral medicinal products" and that the impact "is most pronounced at the time of tirzepatide treatment initiation." "The tirzepatide Patient Information Leaflet pregnancy section states: This medicine should not be used during pregnancy as the effects of this medicine on an unborn child are not known. If you are pregnant, think you may be pregnant or are planning to have a baby, ask your doctor for advice before using this medicine. Article continues below "It is recommended to use contraception while using this medicine. If you are a woman with obesity or overweight and are using oral contraceptives, you should consider also using a barrier method of contraception (e.g. a condom) or switching to a non-oral contraceptive method for four weeks after starting Mounjaro and for four weeks after each increase in dose."
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
I got pregnant while using Mounjaro...despite being on The Pill
A woman has warned those using blockbuster weight loss jabs that contraception could be useless—after she conceived while on Mounjaro, despite taking The Pill. Natasha Major, 26, from Hertfordshire, became pregnant just two weeks after starting the injections, even though she had fertility problems and was taking contraception. Ironically, the trainee teacher began using the jab, dubbed the 'King Kong' of weightloss jabs, in a bid to improve her health before trying to have a third child. Due to her polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)—a condition that causes irregular periods, weight gain and fertility problems—Ms Major thought getting pregnant would be a challenge. It follows an alert issued yesterday, by the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), urged women using Mounjaro to 'double-up' their contraception if using The Pill due to concerns of reduced effectiveness. Meanwhile, those using other slimming jabs, like Ozempic and Wegovy, were advised to use 'effective' contraception due to a lack of data about whether the drugs are safe to use in pregnancy. There may be potential risks to both the pregnant woman and the foetus. Officials added that women who become pregnant while using the medications must cease taking them immediately. Those who are breastfeeding should the injections stop too. Despite having two children, Ms Major and her partner had struggled with fertility problems, particularly when trying for their second child. This inspired her to embark on a weight-loss journey in order to enhance her chances of a healthy third pregnancy. 'I wanted to be healthy and more confident, so I could go on to have a healthier pregnancy,' she said. 'Being overweight and pregnant makes it difficult. Me and my partner have two children already and always knew we'd love one more, but I am overweight. 'I hoped I'd lose the weight, so I went online and ordered the Mounjaro injections,' she added. However, after just two weeks on the slimming jabs, Ms Major became pregnant—despite taking The Pill at the same time each morning. 'We weren't planning it, so at first I was in disbelief. It really baffled me', she said. 'When I was trying for my second daughter it took two years and the entire two years I was taking ovulation tests daily for months, and I never got a positive.' After reading about the potential harm the jabs could cause her baby, Ms Major was hit with a wave of anxiety. 'I was like "oh my goodness, something might go wrong or there might be something wrong with the baby or I might miscarry"'. Ms Major said she called her GP, who told her to ring 111, a non-emergency helpline. 'They pretty much said there's absolutely no information on it. 'All they said was, if you start bleeding, you're probably miscarrying and to stop taking the Mounjaro.' Now, nine weeks later, Ms Major has been given the good news that her baby is healthy, following an early scan. The expectant mother said: 'I'm a lot happier now. I wasn't unhappy at first, but it was just a shock that took over.' Ms Major is now campaigning for better awareness of the potential side effects of popular weight-loss jabs, such as Mounjaro. 'I don't remember reading anywhere, or it wasn't made clear to me, that Mounjaro can dilute your contraceptive pill,' she said. 'There's a lot of people that really don't know that. 'I am quite fortunate that I do want to be a mum again. But there's still that constant worry that I was on [the weight loss jabs] and there's no studies for that. 'Until I've got that baby and they are fine and healthy and everything's gone smoothly, I'll still have that feeling in the back of my mind.' Mounjaro, which works by boosting levels of appetite-suppressing hormones, is thought to cause disruption to the digestive system, potentially flushing out the contraceptive via loose, frequent stools and/or vomiting. To date, drug safety officials have received more than 40 reports relating to pregnancy among women on the drugs. The reports related to pregnancy, recorded by medics and patients, include problems such as birth defects, miscarriages, and unplanned pregnancies. The MHRA added in some cases women should continue to use contraception for up to two months after stopping the medications before trying to get pregnant. Patients taking weight-loss injections are already advised to use contraception, and to stop taking the drugs if they get pregnant, in leaflets that come with the drugs. Some 35,000 British women of child-bearing age were prescribed the jabs on the NHS in England in 2024, official figures suggest. However, this is likely to be an underestimate, given that many acquire the drug privately. A spokesman from Eli Lilly, the drug firm that makes Mounjaro, said: 'Patient safety is Lilly's top priority, and we actively engage in monitoring, evaluating, and reporting safety information for all our medicines. 'The Summary of Product Characteristics for Mounjaro (tirzepatide) explains that tirzepatide has the potential to impact the rate of absorption of concomitantly administered oral medicinal products, and that the impact is most pronounced at the time of tirzepatide treatment initiation.' 'The tirzepatide Patient Information Leaflet pregnancy section states: This medicine should not be used during pregnancy as the effects of this medicine on an unborn child are not known. 'If you are pregnant, think you may be pregnant or are planning to have a baby, ask your doctor for advice before using this medicine.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Pregnant women warned against using weight-loss jabs
Women using weight-loss jabs are being advised to stop if they are trying for a baby, have fallen pregnant or are breastfeeding. Drug safety experts in the UK say it's not known whether taking the medicines, such as Wegovy and Mounjaro, could harm an unborn baby. The advice already appears in patient information leaflets that come with the medicines. But there are concerns that the growing popularity of 'skinny jabs' means many women aren't using the drugs safely or getting the right advice. Natasha Major, 26, started using Mounjaro to lose weight before planning to try for her third baby in a few years' time, but was shocked six weeks later to find she was pregnant. She was taking the contraceptive pill at the time. "I have polycystic ovaries as well, so I can't get pregnant easily or quickly. So it was an even bigger shock that I had, which didn't make any sense to me," she says. She then worried she could be harming the baby or it wouldn't develop properly, so she rang her GP for advice, who told her to stop taking it. "We're over the initial shock now and really happy, just wasn't expected," she says. "The last injection I took, I found out about the pregnancy three hours later and haven't taken it since then. "I've had an early scan to make sure the pregnancy was viable and okay - baby had a little heartbeat and everything looks good," Natasha says. The UK drugs regulator, as well as doctors and pharmacists, are worried that popular GLP-1 medicines, known as Wegovy, Mounjaro, Saxenda, Victoza and Ozempic, are not being used safely. These prescription medicines, which are licensed to treat obesity (and Ozempic for type 2 diabetes), make people feel full by mimicking a hormone released after eating. Mounjaro also acts on another hormone linked to appetite and blood sugar control. They are only available on the NHS to people with a very high BMI, but such is the demand for them that many people are buying them from unregulated sellers on social media or from beauty salons, without any medical advice, as a quick fix to lose weight. How do weight loss drugs like Mounjaro and Wegovy work? Women share their bittersweet experience after taking weight-loss drugs As a precaution, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) says women should use contraception while taking GLP-1 medicines and for a certain period afterwards before trying to become pregnant - two months for Wegovy and Ozempic, and one month for Mounjaro. It also advises that those using Mounjaro and taking an oral contraceptive should also use a condom for four weeks after starting the drug, or switch to another method such as the coil or implant. Weight-loss jabs may make the contraceptive pill less likely to work in those who are overweight or obese, the MHRA says. Women should be told this information when they starting taking the jabs, but there are fears the message is not getting through. Natasha bought Mounjaro online and says she "can't remember reading anything about contraception on there". The MHRA has produced new guidance on weight-loss jabs for people taking them. It's acted now because of a very small number of reports of unintended pregnancies and complications in pregnancy made to its Yellow Card scheme, where the public can report suspected side-effects of medicines. Dr Alison Cave, chief safety officer at the MHRA, said there was evidence from animal studies "that these medicines may harm the unborn baby". "But we don't know whether we have the same effects in humans, so much more data is needed to determine that." Women of child-bearing age are usually not included in clinical trials, which is why there is a lack of safety information for them. "If you are taking this medicine and you are pregnant, you should talk to your doctor about stopping the medicine as soon as possible," she said. Sukhi Basra, vice-chairwoman of the National Pharmacy Association, said women should visit their pharmacist for advice if they are confused about when to stop using the drugs. When it comes to accessing contraception, BPAS, the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, says women in the UK "face significant challenges" when trying to access their method of choice. A lack of appointments, long waiting lists and high costs are just some of the barriers they face, BPAS said, as it called for a better plan for providing the choice women need. 'Skinny jabs' too easy to order online, GP warns Weight-loss drugs tested in head-to-head trial 'WeightWatchers set me up to fail' - Why diet industry is losing to jabs like Ozempic
BBC News
5 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Pregnant women warned against using weight-loss jabs
Women using weight-loss jabs are being advised to stop if they are trying for a baby, have fallen pregnant or are safety experts in the UK say it's not known whether taking the medicines, such as Wegovy and Mounjaro, could harm an unborn advice already appears in patient information leaflets that come with the there are concerns that the growing popularity of 'skinny jabs' means many women aren't using the drugs safely or getting the right advice. Natasha Major, 26, started using Mounjaro to lose weight before planning to try for her third baby in a few years' time, but was shocked six weeks later to find she was pregnant. She was taking the contraceptive pill at the time."I have polycystic ovaries as well, so I can't get pregnant easily or quickly. So it was an even bigger shock that I had, which didn't make any sense to me," she then worried she could be harming the baby or it wouldn't develop properly, so she rang her GP for advice, who told her to stop taking it."We're over the initial shock now and really happy, just wasn't expected," she says. "The last injection I took, I found out about the pregnancy three hours later and haven't taken it since then."I've had an early scan to make sure the pregnancy was viable and okay - baby had a little heartbeat and everything looks good," Natasha says. The UK drugs regulator, as well as doctors and pharmacists, are worried that popular GLP-1 medicines, known as Wegovy, Mounjaro, Saxenda, Victoza and Ozempic, are not being used prescription medicines, which are licensed to treat obesity (and Ozempic for type 2 diabetes), make people feel full by mimicking a hormone released after eating. Mounjaro also acts on another hormone linked to appetite and blood sugar are only available on the NHS to people with a very high BMI, but such is the demand for them that many people are buying them from unregulated sellers on social media or from beauty salons, without any medical advice, as a quick fix to lose weight. As a precaution, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) says women should use contraception while taking GLP-1 medicines and for a certain period afterwards before trying to become pregnant - two months for Wegovy and Ozempic, and one month for also advises that those using Mounjaro and taking an oral contraceptive should also use a condom for four weeks after starting the drug, or switch to another method such as the coil or implant. Weight-loss jabs may make the contraceptive pill less likely to work in those who are overweight or obese, the MHRA says. Women should be told this information when they starting taking the jabs, but there are fears the message is not getting bought Mounjaro online and says she "can't remember reading anything about contraception on there". The MHRA has produced new guidance on weight-loss jabs for people taking acted now because of a very small number of reports of unintended pregnancies and complications in pregnancy made to its Yellow Card scheme, where the public can report suspected side-effects of medicines. Dr Alison Cave, chief safety officer at the MHRA, said there was evidence from animal studies "that these medicines may harm the unborn baby"."But we don't know whether we have the same effects in humans, so much more data is needed to determine that."Women of child-bearing age are usually not included in clinical trials, which is why there is a lack of safety information for them."If you are taking this medicine and you are pregnant, you should talk to your doctor about stopping the medicine as soon as possible," she Basra, vice-chairwoman of the National Pharmacy Association, said women should visit their pharmacist for advice if they are confused about when to stop using the it comes to accessing contraception, BPAS, the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, says women in the UK "face significant challenges" when trying to access their method of choice.A lack of appointments, long waiting lists and high costs are just some of the barriers they face, BPAS said, as it called for a better plan for providing the choice women need.
