Top pharmacist warns of ‘worrying’ rise in one of the most painful digestive diseases, caused by weight-loss jabs like Mounjaro
A top pharmacist has warned of a rise in patients on weight-loss injections needing to have invasive surgery after suffering an agonisingly painful complication.
Deborah Grayson, a chemist of 25 years, issued the alert on TikTok claiming she was concerned by a rise in serious gallbladder problems in those on the drugs.
In the clip, viewed over 100,000 times, she said: ‘I’m seeing more and more patients taking weight loss injections who then need their gallbladders removed.’
Ms Grayson, known as ‘The Godmother of Pharmacology’ online, explained the way the drugs worked increased the risk of painful gallstones forming.
‘The injections slow down the flow of bile through the gallbladder and delay emptying by suppressing the release of the hormone that controls it,’ she said.
‘Unfortunately, this can also mean that in some people, this can make bile more sludgy and even lead to the formation of gallstones.’
She added that the patients suffering this problem was most often taking the most powerful weight loss jab currently available, Mounjaro.
Gallstones are small stones made of excess cholesterol which form in the gallbladder, a digestive organ that stores bile the body used to digest fats.
Deborah Grayson, who has worked as a chemist for 25 years and is also a nutritional therapist, issued the alert in a TikTok video on the potential hazards of the Mounjaro brand of weight-loss injections
In most cases the stones don’t cause problems and don’t need to be treated. However, if a stone becomes trapped in a duct inside the gallbladder, it can trigger a sudden wave of intense pain, and other issues.
She said the problem can occur in as many as one in 10 people taking Mounjaro, a warning also included on leaflets by the drug’s manufacturer Eli Lilly.
A similar risk of gallstones is also known to occur in patients taking the similar weight-loss jab Wegovy, made by Novo Nordisk, which also makes Ozempic.
However, she said certain patients may be more at risk of gallstones than others due to other factors increasing the chances of their development.
‘We have a greater risk of developing gallstones if we’re female, have thyroid disease, are menopausal or perimenopausal, or have experienced rapid weight loss,’ she said.
‘If any of these apply to you, it’s important to look out for the signs that your gallbladder is struggling.’
In a follow-up post, Ms Grayson added high cholesterol and poorly managed blood sugar are also risk factors and ‘more of these that apply the greater the risk’.
Ms Grayson, who goes by moniker ‘The Godmother of Pharmacology’, explained said this was due an increased risk in the formation of painful gallstones in those taking the drug
Ms Grayson added it was important to remember that not all patients experience all of these symptoms and patients with any of the signs should speak to their GP for advice.
She said there were a several potential signs of gallstones, or the sludgy bile that can lead to the stones forming, that patients taking the injections should be aware of.
‘They include severe reflux, burping or trapped wind, chest pain, pain under the rib cage, left-sided shoulder pain, severe abdominal pain lasting for hours, diarrhoea, yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes and pale greasy floaty poo,’ she said.
Some social media users who had taken the jabs said they wished they’d seen the expert’s video earlier.
One woman wrote: ‘Wish I had seen this before I started months ago – just been discharged from my second hospital visit (including several days in intensive care) and I’ve got gallbladder surgery next week.’
Alongside pain, gallstones can cause jaundice, a sign the liver is struggling, or pancreatitis, a potentially dangerous swelling of the pancreas.
These patients frequently live a normal life post-surgery as their liver can produce the bile needed for digestion without it being stored in the gallbladder.
While hailed as a breakthrough in tackling obesity, weight-loss jabs have also been shown to have other benefits such as significantly reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
However, like any drug, they have side effects which can vary by frequency and severity.
These range from nausea and abdominal pain to severe digestive issues, bone pain and a potential higher risk of thyroid cancer.
A Mail on Sunday investigation earlier this year revealed almost 400 patients had been hospitalised — some with life-threatening complications — since the rollout of the jabs in the UK.
