453
of 1,000 signatures
To Rt Hon Wes Streeting
We are writing to you as campaigners, carers, people affected by eating disorders, clinicians and MPs to express serious concern over the direction of the NHS 10-Year Plan, the sweeping statements around treatments, and the planned rollout of weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic as part of the government's strategy to reduce obesity rates.
The approach you have laid out in the NHS 10-year plan to tackle obesity risks serious unintended harm, particularly for the millions of people living with or vulnerable to eating disorders. Weight-loss drugs, when promoted at scale without adequate psychological screening or aftercare, can fuel disordered eating, body dysmorphia, and the dangerous societal belief that thinner is always healthier. Clinicians are calling these drugs ‘rocket fuel’ for eating disorders. On top of this, the emphasis on weight and BMI as primary indicators of health is outdated and often counterproductive.
The statistics show that more than half of people on weight loss jabs discontinue them after 6 months. 40-80 percent of our weight and height is determined by our genetics, and with obesity believed to be between a 40-70 percent inheritable disorder - what will a one size fits all model to tackle this really achieve?
An analysis at Oxford University looked at 11 studies of weight loss jabs and found that nearly everyone who came off the drugs regained the weight they lost within 10 months. These drugs are a quick-fix and does not tackle the social determinants of obesity like poverty, lack of access to green spaces or affordable healthy food and fuel to cook it with.
Eating disorder services across the UK are already overstretched and underfunded. The widespread prescription of medications that suppress appetite or promote rapid weight loss risks worsening this crisis, especially alongside societal messaging bombarding us with harmful body ideals and diet culture messaging. Through our campaigning we have heard stories of people who are buying weight loss drugs privately so they are not receiving regular medical monitoring from health professionals as well as teenagers who are digitally altering photos, or fudging the numbers they put in to make it look like they have a higher BMI than they do in order to get their hands on these drugs.
This one size fits all approach, with limited evidence behind it, will have a detrimental impact on our society.
Open letter text
We urge you to consider the following actions:
Suspend the widescale rollout of weight-loss drugs until full impact assessments have been completed, particularly regarding mental health and eating disorder prevalence.
Reframe public health messaging to prioritise wellbeing, nutrition education, and physical activity for enjoyment and health, not weight loss. We need to start nuancing the messaging around eating disorders and obesity.
Ensure that all prevention of obesity programs are coordinated with prevention of eating disorder programs and include relevant stakeholders and people with lived experience.
Meet with the #DumpTheScales campaign group to discuss this in more detail and to share the perspectives of those with lived experience.
This is a pivotal moment for public health policy and no previous government has gotten this right. You have the opportunity to shape a future that supports all bodies, prioritises mental health, and truly addresses the root causes of both obesity and eating disorders. We cannot solve one crisis by fuelling another.
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Eating Disorders & Weight Loss Jabs: Harm waiting to happen
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Eating Disorders & Weight Loss Jabs: Harm waiting to happen
Eating Disorders & Weight Loss Jabs: Harm waiting to happen
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