A new study from University College London suggests that weight-loss medicines are being used, or seriously considered, by millions of adults in Great Britain, raising fresh questions about access, supervision and equity in a market that appears to extend well beyond the NHS. The research, published in BMC Medicine and funded by Cancer Research UK, estimated that 1.6 million adults had used one of the medicines for weight loss in the past year, while a further 3.3 million said they would be interested in using them over the next year.
The findings come from the Smoking Toolkit Study, an ongoing survey that used responses from 5,260 adults in England, Wales and Scotland collected between January and March 2025. Researchers looked at five medicines: Mounjaro, Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus and Saxenda. The study found that 4.5% of respondents had used one of these medicines in the past year for any reason, with 2.9% using them for weight loss and 1.7% using them exclusively for weight loss.
Use appears strongest among women and middle-aged adults
The research reported that use of weight-loss drugs was twice as common among women as men, and was more common among adults aged 45 to 55, as well as those who reported psychological distress in the previous month. Interest in future use was also higher among women and in middle age. According to the study, 8.9% of women said they would likely or very likely consider using the medicines in the next year, compared with 5.1% of men.
Lead author Professor Sarah Jackson said the estimated 4.9 million adults in Great Britain who had recently used, or were interested in using, a weight-loss drug represented nearly one in 10 adults. She also noted that this figure far exceeded NHS England’s initial goal of prescribing the drugs to 220,000 people over three years. The researchers said the data did not include body mass index or health conditions, so it was not possible to determine how much of the use reflected genuine medical need.
Questions over private access and medical supervision
The study also pointed to possible gaps in supervision, with the authors warning that many people may be obtaining these medicines outside the NHS. Professor Clare Llewellyn said the findings raised concerns about equity because of the cost of the drugs, and about whether treatment is being monitored properly. The team said NHS prescribing data captures only a small part of the picture, leaving significant uncertainty about how widely the medicines are being used in the community.
In practical terms, the study suggests that demand for weight-loss drugs in Great Britain is growing faster than formal NHS provision. Whether that demand reflects clinical need, lifestyle use, or a mixture of both remains unclear, but the scale of interest alone indicates that GLP-1 medicines are now a major public health and prescribing issue.
Sursa foto: Imagine generată AI
