Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

What do we REALLY think about the weight loss jabs?

782 replies

Newbabynewhouse · 20/09/2026 21:52

I've put this on AIBU rather than weight loss jab because I want a neutral audience rather than people who are all using the jab.
What are peoples thoughts on the jab? I'd love to hear from someone educated in the medical field about whether these are actually safe for people without diabetes.
I'm obese and I have lost a stone so far by dieting although it's taking me a long time! I know if I keep trying hard I can lose what I need to. Lots of people I know have started dropping weight from using the jabs and I am tempted however, can't shake a feeling that there's something not quite right.
What I mean by this is... these jabs have been around for years for diabetic people, so why have they only just been 'released' to people despite obesity effecting the NHS for years?
I know a woman who fainted in work the other day with gallbladder issues, she's on the jab.
Also, I'm going to sound a little conspiracy theorist now, but, isn't it odd these jabs became popular straight after people starting refusing to have more covid jabs..?.. I'd love to hear from people with a bit of background info or medical professionals to tell me whether I'm overthinking or if I'm onto something?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
Deadleaves77 · 20/09/2026 21:59

All medications have side effects, and probably the absolute safest thing is to lose weight naturally and steadily whilst upping exercise, however if someone has been unable to achieve this then the jabs are a great tool, especially when used sensibly and not to force a starvation diet. Obesity itself comes with significant health risks

The jabs have been around for years for diabetes. They are safe. Medications take a long time to be approved for alternative uses

Itd not in anyway odd the jabs came out around the time people started refusing covid injections. Firstly they didnt, and secondly people are happy to take medications that they see a benefit from.

BackIntoTheMaze · 20/09/2026 22:02

You think mounjaro injections are covid vaccines by stealth???

Popadomorbread · 20/09/2026 22:06

Gallbladder issues are common with anyone who is losing weight. Especially quickly.
it takes a long time for medication to be approved for use for something other than originally intended. It also has cost implications for the NHS when it does. It has been used for a long time for diabetes. It is safe if used correctly. There are side effects as with all medication and some people may become ill. Again same as some people do from aspirin.
Your comment about them being used to covertly inject people with the covid vaccine is absurd therefore I doubt you are genuine.

Deadleaves77 · 20/09/2026 22:12

Oh wait I didnt realise OP thought they were sneaking covid vaccines into mounjaro 😂

I dont anyone gives a shit enough about covid vaccines to go to all the effort of sneaking it into Mounjaro 😂

LuckyHazelFox · 20/09/2026 22:16

Or maybe they have become popular because people have seen the success stories and thought I will have some of that.

AgnesMcDoo · 20/09/2026 22:17

My mental and physical health is in the best place it’s been for decades.

I’m in remission for diabetes and high blood pressure and no longer have to take medication for these

I’ve lost 6 stone and I have a healthy BMI

I now enjoy exercise and food without food noise and I look great.

I will take MJ forever.

JustMerelyHere · 20/09/2026 22:19

Leaving aside the conspiracy nonsense. I am on mounjaro, because of diabetes but it's all the same drug. It undeniably works but I resisted it for a long time until other options had failed. The urge to eat is such a primal part of being alive, it feels scary to me to mess with that. There are undeniable side effects for many people and I wouldn't even consider doing it when not under strict supervision of medical professionals. So I guess my advice is try not to take them unless you absolutely have to and only when properly prescribed.

There's nothing about being diabetic that I'm aware of that makes these more "safe" than if you're not diabetic, it just alters the risk equation. OP, I think you're doing it the right way and I wish you luck with your continued weight loss journey.

OrangeFlower14 · 20/09/2026 22:21

@Newbabynewhouse “What I mean by this is... these jabs have been around for years for diabetic people, so why have they only just been 'released' to people despite obesity effecting the NHS for years”

well, didn’t they used beta blockers for blood pressure before they use them for anxiety? They learn new things.

No idea what you’re trying to say about Covid you clearly don’t think that people are taking a monthly Covid vaccine

LuckyHazelFox · 20/09/2026 22:22

Anybody who's taken them should be under supervision. Non diabetics are perfectly safe taking them and aren't any less worthy.

canklesmctacotits · 20/09/2026 22:24

Did people with diabetes use eg Mounjaro for the diabetes and find significant/meaningful weight loss was a side effect? What if the person didn’t have any weight to lose/had a low BMI? Were they prescribed something else?

FunnyOrca · 20/09/2026 22:27

I have two friends who I suspect are on them. It’s made any social occasion involving food weird. It’s almost like they are guilty they are not eating.

One of them has pre-teens and it’s weird seeing her feed them but barely eating anything herself.

I think it would have affected me as a preteen to see my mother barely eat.

EDIT: that being said, both are much healthier now! One was probably obese (?) and the other overweight. One of them has taken up sport that I think they would not have done at their old weight.

fuckeditupbadly · 20/09/2026 22:28

Millions workd wide are now taking them with minimal or zero side effects. Many users report improvements in many chronic inflammatory conditions plus the benefits of weight loss. They do not melt fat. They suppress appetite and slow down digestion so you eat less. That's it. Many people are deciding to stay on a low dose as a maintenance tool to prevent weight gain. Which is fine and entirely in line with other long term meds.
Many people find that habi g shifted the initial weight, they are able to exercise which helps maintain.

No idea what the covid angle is.

musicandmen · 20/09/2026 22:30

I struggled for 6 years to lose weight! My thyroid is borderline under active but not enough to warrant medicine!
i had. Other symptoms as well as the unable to lose weight. I followed a strict diet, I went the gym, I got a PT.

I have been on the jabs (retatrutide) I’ve lost 3 stone in 6 months. My skin is healthly, I have more energy, my hair and nails are healthier. I am sleeping better. My tinnitus is manageable- after 3 years of it being debilitating.

from a vanity point of view I am wearing nice clothes, instead of hiding in leggings and baggy jumpers. I am getting on photos with my kids without wanting to cry when looking at back at them etc this has made me a happier more confident person

I have had some side effects- heartburn. Urgent need to use the toilet if I have eaten the wrong thing the day before or drank alcohol - but I knew the risks. However I would say that positives have outweighed the negatives for me and I am glad I done it

SilenceInside · 20/09/2026 22:30

The answers to your questions are quite easily found. For example, you say

"What I mean by this is... these jabs have been around for years for diabetic people, so why have they only just been 'released' to people despite obesity effecting the NHS for years?"

They have only recently been approved for obesity treatment because there is a process to follow to get a medication approved for a new usage. You need to do further clinical trials to show the medication is appropriate, effective and safe. You then need to submit that evidence to the regulatory authorities, the MHRA in the UK, who then spend some time analysing the evidence and then deciding on whether it's appropriate for use in the UK, who can access it and what the criteria for accessing it are. That makes it available for private prescriptions. Then the NHS need to do their own decision making process to decide if they can afford to use the medication, how to manage that and who to prioritise.

That process takes years, so it's not some conspiracy.

That leads me on to this comment

"I'd love to hear from someone educated in the medical field about whether these are actually safe for people without diabetes."

I am not a HCP or in a medical field, but I am educated... Of course they are "safe" for people without diabetes but with obesity. Safe as in any other medication is safe, so the health benefits across all the people using them will outweigh the risks. These medications are tested in clinical trials to exactly demonstrate that.

None of that has anything at all to do with Covid, which is some truly paranoid thought process.

Mumtobabyhavoc · 20/09/2026 22:31

Totally don't get you OP on a connection between vaccination and weight-loss injections. 🤔

However, I'm in Canada and we get a lot of American tv programming with their commercials and I remember the first Ozempic ads (O-O-O-Ozempic) saying it was for diabetes with the voice-over "warnings" at the end also noting "some" users "may experience weight loss". I was all 🙄 roighttttt, not trying imply using the meds for weight loss, are you. And then it was all over the news that the medication was in short supply because, wait for it, people were getting it off script for weight loss. It wasn't long after it was approved for weight loss. 🤷‍♀️

EveryDayisFriday · 20/09/2026 22:35

I think they are amazing meds for those that need it, much better than gastric surgery.

My issue is the cost and how it will become a luxury of those that can afford it.

Stompythedinosaur · 20/09/2026 22:38

I think you're thinking too much into it. I don't for a second think anyone is sneaking covid vaccines into weight loss jabs.

I think the jabs are very interesting. Quite a game changer for a lot of people.

PrizedPickledPopcorn · 20/09/2026 22:39

Apparently it resets the pancreas in some way, rejuvenates it- and other parts of the body as well. It triggers a protein that makes the changes. Too technical for me to remember the details, but sounds as though we’ll eventually find it really useful for overall health.

Notashamed13 · 20/09/2026 22:40

9 stone down (over 2 years) and think they are worth every penny, I'm the healthiest I think I've ever been, walk at least 5k a day and dont constantly think about food!

Sunbringer · 20/09/2026 22:47

Obesity will kill you before any side effects do in the vast vast majority of cases. Obesity is one of the most dangerous non communicable diseases in the UK and it raises risk of cancer, diabetes and CVD. The biggest killers in the UK for anyone over about 30.

Sunbringer · 20/09/2026 22:48

Also the majority of those of us still invited for Covid and flu jabs (immunocompromised etch still go get them. They didn’t become popular right after Covid they were in development for a long time and were finally approved.

leaderZ · 20/09/2026 22:52

I have underactive thyroid, taken up to 12.5 for 2yes and lost minimal weight. Caused massive fatigue and bleeding problems. Stopped taking it and energy is through the roof!

sk didn’t work for me.

SilenceInside · 20/09/2026 22:53

@canklesmctacotits usually for treating T2 diabetes, the dose of Mounjaro is kept as low as necessary to control blood sugars. If too much weight is lost then they would reduce the dose or stop treatment. There are other GLP1s that could be tried, or other medications to control blood sugar.

Glummballs · 20/09/2026 22:53

Sorry, you lost me when you started drawing a link with the drop off of the Covid jabs.

throwaway3749574 · 20/09/2026 23:00

Yeah I was taking you seriously until you mentioned Covid jabs 😆