Recent media and regulatory reports indicate that products marketed as retatrutide, known as 'Godzilla fat jab', an investigational triple-agonist weight-loss drug still in clinical trials are being sold on social platforms and online marketplaces. Health authorities have warned the public that these products are unlicensed, may be counterfeit or contaminated, and present real health risks. A personal account published by The Sun1 describes a user, identified as Nicki Hari, who reported dramatic weight loss alongside severe hair loss attributed to using an illicit retatrutide product.
Retatrutide is a pharmaceutical compound under clinical investigation (by Eli Lilly) that acts on three hormone receptors (GIP, GLP-1, and glucagon) to reduce appetite and body weight. Early clinical trials showed substantial weight loss in study participants, which has generated public interest in the molecule as a potential next-generation anti-obesity therapy. However, retatrutide remains investigational and is not approved for prescription or sale outside regulated clinical trials.
Investigative reporting and regulatory alerts show a parallel market emerging on social media platforms (TikTok, Telegram, Instagram) and through online sellers offering peptides or injections labelled “retatrutide” or “research chemicals.” Sellers may use coded language or claim products are for “research use only” to avoid regulations, while providing dosing instructions for human injection.
The Sun reports the experience of Nicki Hari, a 58-year-old from Borehamwood, who said she sourced retatrutide online after Mounjaro became too costly. According to The Sun, Nicki reported rapid weight loss (four stone) but also significant hair loss, including bald patches that led her to plan a future hair transplant. The article states she purchased product for about £120 per 20 mg and has spent large sums on prior weight-loss treatments.
Health agencies emphasize several key risks:
Unverified identity and potency: Products sold online may be counterfeit, mislabelled, or contain no active ingredient at all, or the wrong dose. This makes effects unpredictable and potentially dangerous.
Contamination and sterility concerns: Vials not produced under regulated manufacturing standards may contain microbes, endotoxins, or particulates leading to infection or systemic reactions.
Improper storage and handling: Peptide-based injections typically require cold-chain storage; retail or black-market supply chains may not maintain necessary temperatures, compromising product stability and safety.
Legal and regulatory violations: Selling or supplying an unlicensed medicine for human use breaches laws in many jurisdictions; agencies such as the U.S. FDA and the UK MHRA have issued warnings and taken enforcement actions.
The FDA has explicitly warned that certain online vendors are offering unapproved GLP-1 and related products (semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide) labelled “research use only” but being used by consumers, and has taken regulatory action against sellers.
Users posting on social media and journalists investigating black-market products have reported side effects that include nausea, abdominal pain, fainting, dizziness, and hair loss. While individual reports cannot establish causation, they raise plausible concerns: rapid weight loss and hormonal shifts can be associated with hair thinning (telogen effluvium) and other metabolic stresses. In addition, if a product is counterfeit or contaminated, infections or toxic reactions may occur. Clinical trial data for the authentic investigational retatrutide also list expected side effects typical for GLP-1/GIP/glucagon agonists (gastrointestinal symptoms being common), but the safety profile of black-market preparations is unknown and likely worse.
Authorities in multiple countries have acted to disrupt illicit supply chains and to warn the public:
The U.S. FDA has issued warnings and enforcement letters to online vendors selling unapproved GLP-1 and related drugs and encourages reporting of adverse events.
The UK MHRA and other European regulators have warned against buying unlicensed weight-loss injections from social media sellers and have seized large quantities of trafficked products in enforcement actions.
Media platforms are under pressure to remove posts and accounts promoting illicit medical products, but sellers sometimes use coded language or private channels to evade moderation.
Reports that retatrutide products are being sold illicitly online have prompted regulatory warnings and enforcement actions. Medical authorities emphasize that investigational drugs should remain within clinical trials and that consumers should avoid black-market products because of unknown composition, dosing, sterility, and safety.
(Rh/TL)
