The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday it has sent warning letters to four companies for selling unapproved versions of GLP-1 drugs including semaglutide and tirzepatide, the active ingredients in popular diabetes and weight-loss drugs.
The websites indicate that their products are labelled as “research use only” or “not for human consumption or clinical use.” However, evidence gathered by the FDA establishes that these products are actually intended to be used as drugs for humans. The FDA has observed that the website offers misbranded products that misleadingly suggest that the drug products are approved or endorsed by the agency in some way.
Semaglutide is an active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic, while Eli Lilly’s diabetes drug sold as Mounjaro and weight-loss drug Zepbound use the ingredient tirzepatide.