The national medical director at NHS England has expressed alarm at reports of weight loss medication being used inappropriately.

Speaking at the NHS Confed Expo conference in Manchester this week, Professor Stephen Powis said that new weight loss drugs were going to be an ‘important part’ of the NHS’s approach to tackling obesity.

But he warned that they were ‘powerful medications’ with ‘side effects and complications’, and ‘absolutely not quick fixes… for those who are otherwise quite healthy, but who just want to lose a few pounds’.

Mr Powis said it was ‘good news’ that the evidence base for the benefit of weight loss medication was growing, but highlighted that medication was just ‘one part’ of tackling obesity, alongside healthy lifestyle and other measures.

‘It does alarm me though when I hear reports that they are being inappropriately used,’ Mr Powis said.

‘These are powerful medications that have side effects and complications, and can in certain circumstances be dangerous,’ he said, highlighting the importance of clinical supervision.

‘They are absolutely not quick fixes… for those who are otherwise quite healthy, but who just want to lose a few pounds,’ he added.

This comes as reports have circulated about patients inappropriately obtaining weight loss drugs through online services, and some people reportedly admitted to A&E after using weight loss medication.

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) is undertaking work to update its guidance to provide more clarity for pharmacy professionals working in online settings, it has told The Pharmacist.

This came as the Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) called for the pharmacy regulator to issue ‘unambiguous guidance’ about what it expects of prescribers using questionnaire-based or asynchronous models to provide online prescribing services.