Health · Healthcare & Policy · 3 hrs ago
UK watchdog bans four adverts for prescription weight-loss pills
The UK’s Advertising Standards Authority banned four adverts for promoting prescription-only weight-loss pills to the public.
The adverts were from weight-loss providers Voy, Juniper and MedExpress, and appeared on a bus, video-on-demand services, YouTube and Instagram.
The ads suggested pills were available for weight loss, even when they did not name a medicine directly.
The first oral GLP-1 tablet for weight management was licensed as a prescription-only medicine in June, and such medicines cannot be advertised to the public.
The ASA said small-print references to a food supplement did not change the ads’ overall impression.
The watchdog said advertisers must consider how people are likely to understand an advert, not just whether it names a prescription medicine.
Voy and MedExpress said the adverts had been removed, and the ASA said it would keep the sector under review.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) banned four adverts for promoting prescription-only weight-loss medicines to the public.
Two adverts were from Voy, and the others were from Juniper and MedExpress.
The ASA said the adverts could be understood as promoting prescription-only oral weight-loss medicines, even when they did not name the medicines.
Voy said it had withdrawn its advert during the investigation and would not run it again.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) welcomed the rulings, saying promotion of prescription medicines can affect public health.
- Who
- The ASA banned adverts by Voy, Juniper and MedExpress.
- What
- Four adverts promoting prescription-only weight-loss medicines to the public were banned.
- When
- The rulings were reported on 4 November 2026.
- Where
- The adverts appeared on a bus, video-on-demand services, YouTube and Instagram.
- Why
- The ASA said their wording and imagery could lead people to understand they promoted prescription-only medicines.
ASA
Voy
Overall impression
ASA
The ASA said Voy’s adverts were likely to be understood as promoting prescription-only oral Wegovy tablets.
Voy
Voy said its campaigns were developed to align with UK advertising standards.
Response to ruling
ASA
The ASA said small-print references to a food supplement did not change the impression created by the adverts.
Voy
Voy said it withdrew the advert during the investigation and would not run it again.
The first oral GLP-1 tablet for weight management was licensed as a prescription-only medicine.
A Voy advert featuring a pill and the headline “The weight is over…Voy” was seen on a bus.
A second Voy advert appeared on video-on-demand services.
Ads by Simple Online Pharmacy and Pharmacy Online were banned for promoting oral weight-loss medicines to the public.
The ASA’s rulings banning four adverts by Voy, Juniper and MedExpress were reported.
- Number of banned adverts
- 4
- Advertisers
- Voy, Juniper and MedExpress
- Voy campaign
- The weight is over
- Medicines regulator
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
- Earlier rulings
- Simple Online Pharmacy and Pharmacy Online ads were banned the previous month
What people are saying
A medicine doesn’t need to be named for an ad to be understood as promoting a prescription-only medicine and references to a non-medicinal product in small print won’t necessarily change that impression.
Prescription medicines are not consumer goods, and promoting them can have serious impacts on public health.
We actioned withdrawal of the advert while the investigation was under way and will not run it again.