Massive demand for weight loss jab is ‘driven by women going through menopause and perimenopause’

• Online pharmacies have been unable to keep up with demand for Wegovy 

Women going through the menopause are driving private prescriptions for weight loss jabs, experts say.

Online pharmacies have been unable to keep up with demand for Wegovy since it was approved for weight loss earlier this year.

Now analysis has found that weight gain caused by the menopause is a major factor in those signing up for treatment.

Juniper, an online weight management clinic, said nine out of ten of its 13,000 clients in the UK are women, with around half aged over 45.

When questioned by pharmacists, most said they wanted the once-weekly jab to shift the pounds gained during menopause and perimenopause, which can start several years earlier.

Menopausal women gain around 1lb to 1.5lb a year (0.4kg to 0.7kg) on average until the age of 60 to 65. Changes to hormone levels often result in fat becoming more concentrated around internal organs.

It is especially difficult for women to stay a healthy weight as they age, made harder by a natural reduction in muscle mass, slowing the rate at which the body uses calories.

But trials of appetite-suppressant drugs such as Wegovy have seen people lose up to 20 per cent of their body weight.

This has resulted in ‘thousands-long’ waiting lists with private providers, while makers Novo Nordisk ramp up production capabilities.

Dr Ramy Bishay, an endocrinologist at Juniper, said women experiencing menopause were leading the charge for the medication.

He explained: ‘As we get older, it becomes more difficult for anyone to maintain a healthy weight. In your 30s you might get by with an X amount of calories, when you hit your 50s you might need 200 or 300 calories less.

‘In women, they tend to see this a little bit more drastically, probably due to the massive reduction in oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone during menopause and a decline in lean body mass tissue.’

He added: ‘It’s well known that because of some of the symptoms of menopause, menopausal or perimenopausal women tend to become less physically active.

‘So it’s little wonder that women going through the menopause and perimenopause see weight gain which adds up over the years.’

He warned that demographic changes leading to rising numbers of menopausal women – coupled with increasing obesity rates – could lead to a surge in serious conditions such as fatty liver disease.

Juniper estimates it has helped people in the UK lose the equivalent of 70 tons of weight over the last 18 months. However, critics insist weight loss drugs should not be viewed as a ‘magic bullet’.

Francesco Branca, World Health Organisation director of nutrition and food safety, said: ‘The kind of communication that has been done around these drugs – ‘we’ve found a solution’ – that’s wrong.’

He said the drugs must be part of a ‘comprehensive approach’.