Lilly says its weight loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound shouldn’t be used for ‘cosmetic’ reasons

Lilly says its weight loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound shouldn’t be used for ‘cosmetic’ reasons
Beth Snyder Bulik
Senior Editor
Eli Lilly says it wants people to stop using its drugs Zepbound and Mounjaro for “cosmetic weight loss,” publishing a letter Thursday saying that it “stands against the use of its medicines” for that purpose.

The two drugs are different approvals of tirzepatide — Zepbound for chronic weight management and Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes — which in studies have recorded weight loss effects of up to 20% of body mass. The data led to a social media tsunami of personal testimonials and physician videos, posts and claims around the use of Mounjaro off-label last year after its type 2 approval, and more recently after Zepbound’s November obesity approval.

Celebrities and influencers have contributed to the media storm around the Lilly drugs as well as Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 brands Ozempic (approved for type 2) and Wegovy (approved for obesity). Former NBA player and sports announcer Charles Barkley and comedian Rosie O’Donnell are among those who have specifically called out weight loss from taking tirzepatide in interviews.

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“We are aware of certain practices relating to our tirzepatide medicines that we wish to address publicly to ensure that our medicines are prescribed and used safely,” Lilly said.

The letter comes on the same day Lilly debuted its own direct-to-consumer website to connect patients with physicians. But it also comes as the drugmaker faces new scrutiny, along with Novo Nordisk, over GLP-1 drug side effects, rebound weight gain complaints and the rise of compounded versions of the drugs.

And there is no shortage of eligible, non-cosmetic patients. According to the CDC, 11.6% of people in the US have diabetes, and 41.9% have obesity. That amounts to tens of millions of patients who fall under the drugs’ labels.

Going after compounding
The drugmaker also noted the safety risks of compounded tirzepatide, which has been sold by some compounding pharmacies. Lilly and Novo have both pushed back on compounders and wellness centers, separately suing some of them last year for inaccurately promoting their weight management brand drugs.

“Lilly is extremely concerned that some of the compounded tirzepatide that Lilly has tested has contained high amounts of impurities, and, in at least one instance, was actually nothing more than sugar alcohol,” it said. Compounding pharmacies are typically used to formulate versions of drugs at a unique strength or in ways that avoid, for example, an ingredient a patient might be allergic to.

Evan Seigerman, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, said it was useful to go after the compounding pharmacies, in part because of the risk of safety issues that could blow back on the drugmakers.

“Negative reactions from compounded weight loss drugs could be a headwind if serious incidents are reported in significant quantity,” Seigerman wrote.

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Beth Snyder Bulik
Senior Editor
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