As Wegovy pills arrive in the UK, doctors have warned of an increased risk of counterfeit weight-loss medications. And the dangers posed aren’t just to your bank balance.

‘This is an important and growing concern,’ says Dr Janelle Duah, an internal medicine physician at Yale and the associate medical director of Maven Clinic. ‘With the enormous demand for weight-loss medications, counterfeit products have entered the market – and they can be genuinely dangerous. A recent analysis of safety reports identified over 230 cases linked to suspected counterfeit semaglutide, with nearly 90% classified as serious adverse events, including episodes of dangerously low blood sugar that shouldn’t occur with legitimate semaglutide in people without diabetes.’

As Wegovy pills aren’t yet accessible through the NHS, many people will turn to online suppliers. And when confronted by high prices and lengthy questionnaires, it’s only natural those seeking weight-loss support search for cheaper, more easily accessible versions. Research by Zava found that more than one in five weight-loss medication users in the UK did not have their drugs prescribed by a healthcare professional – and 11.75% obtained their treatment through social media.

Bad players are capitalising on our demand for weight loss by offering up cheaper, less effective - and potentially damaging - knock-offs of GLP-1s.

Fake weight-loss medications are not a new phenomenon, but the arrival of them in the form of tablets rather than injections may increase the risk. It’s easier to create knock-off pills than it is to make reliable-seeming injections. Dr Kathryn Basford of online doctor Zava says: ‘Between January 2024 and June 2025, over 18,000 illegal or unregulated weight loss and diabetes medications were seized at UK borders, and this is a trend that isn’t slowing down. With the ease of counterfeiting pills, we can expect this to be a prevalent issue after Wegovy pills launch in the UK shortly.’

So, what do you need to know? What should you be looking out for when trying to tell if weight-loss medication is the legitimate version? How can you protect yourself? Here’s what the experts say.

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Only get weight-loss medications from registered healthcare professionals or a licensed pharmacy

‘If the medication isn’t coming through a licensed pharmacy with a valid prescription, don’t assume it’s genuine,’ says Dr Hector Perez, a lead bariatric surgeon at Renew Bariatrics.

‘The key to reducing the chances of buying counterfeit Wegovy pills is purchasing through registered pharmacies with qualified healthcare professionals,’ says Dr Basford. ‘If unsure, always check for the pharmacy’s General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) registration number and verify it on the GPhC website.’

For now, name-brand is best

‘Be sceptical of products marketed as “generic Wegovy” before legitimate generics are available,’ says Dr Perez.

Watch out for too-good-to-be-true prices

Dr Basford describes super-low costs as an ‘instant giveaway’ that the Wegovy pills you’re looking at may be false. To give you a sense of a normal cost, the price for a starting dose of Wegovy pills is £109.99 at Lloyds, £98.97 at Asda, £119.99 at Zava and £99 at Chemist4U. So if someone’s offering a month’s worth of pills for under £50, alarm bells should be ringing.

Don’t trust sellers that don’t require a consultation

Any reputable provider of weight-loss drugs will carry out a thorough consultation to ensure the medication is right for you. Dr Basford says: ‘If no consultations are offered, no health questionnaires are required and no dosing guidance is provided, these are clear indicators that the medication is not being prescribed by a qualified clinician.’

Do a visual check

‘Check that the packaging, batch numbers and branding match what the manufacturer produces,’ advises Dr Duah. ‘If anything looks off – unusual packaging, misspellings, different tablet appearance – do not take it.’ Spelling errors, poor quality packaging, blurring and added or missing words are also all red flags.

Ask for support

Anyone providing genuine weight-loss medication should be offering guidance on use and support with any issues. If the place selling your medication offers neither, don’t take it.

If you’re worried, don’t delay seeking medical help

‘If you experience unexpected side effects, particularly symptoms like severe low blood sugar, dizziness or feeling generally unwell in a way that doesn’t match the known side effect profile, stop taking the medication and seek medical advice immediately,’ says Dr Duah. Report any counterfeit medications through Yellow Card.

A final thought from Dr Hector: ‘The potential harm isn’t just that the medication won’t work. Counterfeit products may contain incorrect doses, contaminants or entirely unrelated substances, making them both ineffective and potentially dangerous.

‘For a medication intended to improve health, taking an unverified version is a risk that simply isn’t worth taking.’