After Andy King was told he was not eligible to receive weight-loss jabs on the NHS, he turned to the internet to order them privately. But before long, he was inundated with promotions.
"Every other advert on my social media feed is an offer to have a Black Friday deal on the drugs," he said.
In a video call with the Guardian, King, a 59-year-old leisure management consultant and coach, demonstrated what happens when he looks for such medications.
Opening a search engine, he typed three words: "Weight loss drugs."
The results were myriad, with links to high-street pharmacies offering the jabs with various prices and discounts.
"Weight Loss Injections - Black Friday - Save £20," the first result read, with a link to LloydsPharmacy.
Below it, an advert from Superdrug claimed: "Multiple weight-loss treatments available. New customers get 10% off with code..."
"It's just full of price-led offers for the drug," said King.
Clicking on one of the adverts, King said the situation felt like a transaction.
"It just feels like this is price led. You can have it if you want it," he said. "There will be a consultation that you need to go through. But I'm not buying a consultation."
Promotion of prescription-only medications, such as the weight-loss jabs Wegovy and Mounjaro, is illegal, and a growing number of online pharmacies have been reprimanded by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for such adverts.
However, experts are also concerned about the aggressive promotion of weight-loss services that fall within the law. These tend to exploit loopholes in legislation, such as the ability to advertise a consultation or service, but often include references to weight-loss jabs and their effects, too.
Oksana Pyzik, an associate professor of pharmacy practice and policy at UCL school of pharmacy, said: "This trend reflects an unprecedented hype around weight-loss medications, with many consumers viewing them as lifestyle products rather than regulated medicines. The public is often unaware of the requirement for prescriptions and consultations."
The perspective is shared by David Hatton, a semi-retired financial IT programme manager. "I'll be honest, it makes you feel like it's not a prescription drug," he said.
Hatton, 62, sought out weight-loss jabs after finding his GP was not in a position to provide a prescription. He used AI to search online for the best price for the medications.
"You can just ask the question: 'What's the best online pharmacy to buy [the weight-loss jab] Mounjaro?' and it lists six of them, and it gives you links into them, and it tells you the benefits and disadvantages," he said.