Social Media Competitions Offer Unlicensed Weight-Loss Drugs as Dangerous Prizes
Hidden-market promoters of weight-loss medications are exploiting social media platforms to run "giveaway" competitions that offer powerful, unlicensed drugs as prizes. These dangerous promotions, operating through WhatsApp and Telegram groups, are targeting consumers with experimental substances that have not been approved for medical use in the United Kingdom.
Digital Marketing Tactics Applied to Unregulated Pharmaceuticals
Health experts have described these social media promotions as "extremely dangerous," warning that digital marketing techniques typically used for consumer products are now being applied to unregulated pharmaceuticals. One monitored WhatsApp group called BioUK Research peptides 2 recently posted a competition urging members: "Last chance to enter – 24 hours left!" claiming it was their "biggest giveaway yet."
The competition offered what it described as an "ultimate peptide stack" including retatrutide 20mg, Glow pens containing GHK-Cu copper peptides, and melanotan II. According to the promotion, participants needed only to add three friends to the group and follow the account on TikTok and Instagram to enter the "100% free" competition, with winners selected using a random name generator.
Unapproved Substances with Serious Health Risks
Retatrutide remains an experimental weight-loss drug that has not yet received approval for use anywhere in the world. Glow pens containing copper peptides are often marketed as research chemicals or for topical cosmetic use, but pre-mixed pens intended for injection have not been approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Melanotan II represents an unapproved tanning peptide that increases melanin production but can cause significant side-effects. Official UK health guidance states clearly that melanotan injections are illegal to sell and supply, remain untested for safety or efficacy, and may pose serious health risks to consumers.
Disguised Sales Through Fitness Programmes
Investigations have revealed that some companies are disguising drug sales as legitimate fitness coaching services. One operation calling itself BioBlue Cosmetics, also operating as BioBlue Fitness, presents itself as a female-led online coaching platform featuring workout imagery and fitness plans fronted by trainers named Rita, Teressa, Carla and Mary Jane.
However, when potential customers inquire through linked WhatsApp and Telegram channels, administrators reveal that the "coaching" actually refers to unlicensed weight-loss drugs. For instance, "Get fit with Rita" serves as coded shorthand for retatrutide, with administrators explaining that consumers are not signing up for workout programmes at all.
Serious Regulatory Violations and Safety Concerns
Under UK medicines regulations, weight-loss injections such as GLP-1 drugs can legally be supplied only with a valid prescription and must be dispensed through licensed pharmacies or authorised healthcare providers. Drugs that have not been approved for medical use, including retatrutide which remains in clinical trials, cannot legally be marketed or sold to the public at all.
Emily Rickard, a research fellow at the University of Bath, expressed serious concerns about these practices: "Giveaways, countdown timers and raffles represent classic pressure tactics designed to override caution, yet they're being used to promote powerful, unlicensed injectable drugs. This not only trivialises the use of unlicensed medicines but actively discourages people from stopping to ask whether what's being offered is legal or appropriate."
Dr Piotr Ozieranski, a reader in sociology at the University of Bath, added: "Highly problematic digital marketing techniques are being applied to unregulated pharmaceuticals. Worryingly, they are now being used to promote powerful injectable drugs as 'prizes' rather than as healthcare interventions that require appropriate clinical oversight."
Platform Responses and Regulatory Action
Telegram has stated that the sale of illegal medication is explicitly forbidden by its terms of service, adding that such content is routinely removed whenever discovered. Meta, the owner of WhatsApp, pointed to its Community Standards which state that content attempting to buy, sell, trade, donate or gift weight-loss products will be removed from the platform.
The BioUK Research peptides 2 channel did not respond to requests for comment, while BioBlue Fitness deleted all messages and discussions in its Telegram channel, telling customers it had "changed settings" without providing further explanation.
Products obtained through these hidden-market sellers carry serious risks, as they are not subject to standard safety checks, quality controls or medical oversight that regulated medicines must undergo. Advertising or distributing prescription-only or unlicensed medicines through social media competitions may constitute a breach of UK medicines regulations, potentially exposing both sellers and consumers to legal consequences.
