Number of fat jab NHS prescriptions doubles in a year as 73% of Sun readers now think about using injections

ENGLAND has become a fat jab nation as weight loss drug prescriptions double to almost three million in a year.

Demand for drugs such as Ozempic and Mounjaro show no signs of slowing, with the NHS splashing out £269million on them in 2024-25.

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It comes as a new Sun survey reveals 73 per cent of our readers are thinking of using them as they struggle to shift weight.

Official figures show prescriptions for the big three — Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy — rocketed from 1.4million in 2023-24 to 2.7million last year.

The increase was driven by Mounjaro, regarded as the strongest jab, with prescriptions surging to 1.1million from just 3,300 a year earlier.

Most were prescribed to people with type 2 diabetes, as the injections were designed to treat that condition, and have only recently been approved for weight loss alone.

NHS figures suggest prescriptions in Wales also doubled last year, from approximately 34,000 to 70,000, and in Scotland from 40,000 to 50,000.

The numbers are expected to rise again this year as the NHS introduces them through slimming clinics.

More than a million people are also already buying the jabs privately.

Dr Leyla Hannbeck, of the Independent Pharmacies Association, said: “Never in my career have I seen a product with as much hype as these injections.

“The demand is absolutely huge and I expect it to keep increasing — the only way is up.”

Clare Butler, 48, said the jabs also helped her mental health.

The mum, from Manchester, who has lost 4st 4lb, said: “Mounjaro didn’t only quieten the food noise, but it helped quieten the over-thinking, anxious thoughts that had consumed my life for so long.”

She described it as, “the best decision I’ve ever made for myself”.

Research is revealing wide-ranging health benefits to the jabs, such as lowering risks of cancer, heart disease and dementia, yet warnings over weight loss drugs are also increasing.

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Medics warn they must not be used in pregnancy, while trying to conceive or while breastfeeding, for fear they could lead to miscarriage or birth defects.

They have also warned that rapid weight loss caused by the drugs could lead to bone loss and osteoporosis.

Annual statistics from the NHS Business Services Authority show the total number of GLP-1 injections prescribed increased from 1,427,968 in the 2023-24 financial year to 2,734,499 in 2024-25.

It was a 91 per cent spike — accounted for almost entirely by Mounjaro’s growth.

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The totals also included brands such as Saxenda, Ozempic and Wegovy.

In the same period, the cost of prescribing rose from £137,808,297 to £269,276,366 — equal to 2.4 per cent of all NHS spending on pharmacy medicines, or £1 in every £42.

The NHS said: “We expect demand for weight loss drugs to continue to rise in the coming years.”

The Department of Health added: “We recognise the drugs’ importance for treating type 2 diabetes and their exciting remit as new treatments for obesity.”

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