UN health agency warns of counterfeit drugs for diabetes treatment and weight loss

The counterfeit semaglutide – of the specific brand Ozempic – was found in Brazil, the United Kingdom and the United States in October 2023 and was delivered through a regular supply chain.

The official announcement from the WHO follows reports of “falsified semaglutide products” in all geographic regions through its Global Surveillance and Monitoring System (GSMS) since 2022.

Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for Essential Medicines and Health Products, called on all stakeholders to “Stop using any suspected medications and report them to the appropriate authorities..”

Risks

The actual manufacturer of Ozempic confirmed to the WHO that the semaglutide was counterfeit based on the batch and serial numbers.

Semaglutide is designed to help people lower their blood sugar and appetite levels and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. According to the WHO, reports of counterfeit products have increased as demand for the product has increased.

Consuming counterfeit or imitation products can have harmful and life-threatening effects on the body.

Due to its high cost, semaglutide is not recommended by the WHO for the treatment of diabetes.

Avoid counterfeit products

Dr Nakatani said the UN health agency had urged healthcare professionals, regulators and the public to “be alert to these counterfeit batches of medicines”.

It added that health professionals “should report any incident of side effectsReport lack of efficacy and suspected falsification to the national regulatory authorities/national pharmacovigilance centre.”

The WHO also advised people who may be in possession of counterfeit products not to use them and to seek medical attention if they experience adverse reactions during use.

Avoid unknown sources

To avoid such a scenario, WHO advises people to purchase prescription products from a licensed doctor rather than online or from unknown sources.

The WHO added that products should be used as prescribed and that attention should be paid to batch and serial numbers, the product itself should be examined and the quality of the label should be assessed to ensure that the product being used is not counterfeit.