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The Most Powerful Weight Loss Drug Yet Isn’t Approved, but Its Black Market May Already Be Turning Deadly
Gizmodo • • business
Key Points:
- Retatrutide, an experimental weight loss drug developed by Eli Lilly, shows promise with clinical trials indicating up to 30% weight loss, potentially matching results of bariatric surgery, and is expected to gain FDA approval soon.
- Despite its unapproved status, a black market for retatrutide has emerged, with counterfeit and unregulated versions being sold worldwide, some linked to severe and fatal health complications.
- The FDA has received at least two reports this year of deaths potentially connected to illicit retatrutide use, including cases of cardiac arrest and severe dehydration, though causality has not been definitively established.
- Health experts warn that black market versions of GLP-1 drugs like retatrutide carry significant risks due to lack of regulation, potential contamination, and uncertain dosing, making their use particularly dangerous.
- Similar serious adverse events have been reported internationally, highlighting the broader public health concerns associated with the underground distribution of unapproved weight loss medications.
