A mother has told how she felt ‘lucky to be alive’ after a weight loss jab left her hospitalised and suffering black urine.
Claire Reed, from Aberdeen in Scotland, was prescribed Mounjaro in March after she was left ‘fed up’ of not fitting into her clothes properly.
The 49-year-old, who was classed as overweight, claimed she only had to fill out a questionnaire provided by online pharmacy MedExpress before she was offered the £200 a month drug.
She lost four stone in the first four months, dropping from 15 to 11 stone.
But in June, she suddenly began to feel nauseous every time she tried to eat or drink and would faint almost daily.
Despite noticing her urine had turned black due to dehydration she refused to tell family and friends she was on the jab over fear of embarrassment.
It was only when she fell unconscious in the car, her son and daughter rushed her to hospital and she was immediately put on an IV drip to rehydrate the body.
Tirzepatide, the ingredient behind Mounjaro, has long been hailed a game-changer in tackling obesity.
Administered weekly, the drug—manufactured by Eli Lilly—is designed to help type 2 diabetes patients control their blood sugar levels or for obese people to lose weight for health purposes.
However, the injections, known collectively as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs), are known to cause worrying side effects such as pancreatitis—when the pancreas suddenly becomes inflamed—or gastrointestinal issues.
The family of drugs known as GLP-1 RAs, originally developed to treat diabetes, are now often being used for weight loss as they were found to suppress a patient’s appetite.
Recalling her terrifying ordeal, Ms Reed said: ‘I was going on holiday to Dubai with my daughter and I was fed up with not fitting in my clothes. I wasn’t really that big but that was the motivation to start.
‘I ordered them online, I didn’t go to the doctor. There were no instructions on how to deal with it, it works for a lot of women quite well.
‘I couldn’t eat so I was just collapsing because I had no food or water, I wasn’t able to process anything in my body.
‘I felt very sick and had no appetite. Even on holiday, I couldn’t eat. It’s not nice going on holiday and not eating because your whole life revolves around food.
‘I kept collapsing at the end of the day because when you’re not drinking or eating anything your body just shuts down.
‘It was always at the end of the day but I didn’t say anything, I was embarrassed.
‘I was never going to the toilet and when I did my urine was black. I had to force myself to drink water.’
She added: ‘We were in the car and I was just passing out, going in and out of consciousness, my daughter and son started panicking and they took me straight to the doctor, who referred me to hospital.
‘They put me on an IV. I told them I’ve been taking the jab and they said this could be what it is.’
Ms Reed has now vowed never to use the jabs again but is still struggling to eat as she did before starting the medication.
‘I’m still not hungry and still not gaining weight. Any food at all makes me feel sick,’ she said.
‘I was very scared, your body needs food and fluid. I thought I could die, I stopped just now and I’ve never been like this before, trying to get the jab out of my system.
‘The consultant said this is a big problem because the people selling it to you can’t see you, they’re just asking a quick questionnaire. And then you’re left on your own.
‘Your appetite won’t come back, it’s absolutely terrible. I’m so weak and tired all the time.
‘There’s not enough awareness about the dangers of taking it, everyone wants to lose weight and feel great but there are risks.’
MedExpress and Eli Lilly have both been approached for comment.
At least half a million NHS patients and some 15million patients in the US are now thought to be using weight-loss jabs, which can help patients lose up to 20 per cent of their body weight in just a few months.
And the numbers using them privately are even higher.
They have also been shown to significantly reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
However, other reported problems using the jabs include constipation, fatigue, headaches, dizziness and even hair loss.
In June, UK medicines watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) also revealed it had received more than 560 reports of people developing an inflamed pancreas after taking so-called ‘GLP-1′ injections since they were first launched. Ten cases proved fatal.
Under official guidelines, only patients who have a body mass index (BMI) of over 35 and at least one weight-related health problem like high blood pressure, or those who have a BMI of 30 to 34.9 and meet the criteria for referral to a specialist weight management service, should be prescribed weight loss jabs.
In the UK, law forbids the sale of such drugs without a prescription from a medical professional.
