Mother-of-three trying to banish belly fat almost died after ‘skinny jab’ she bought online ‘triggered organ failure’

A mother-of-three has told how she nearly died after injecting herself with a ‘skinny jab’ she bought online.

Lynsay McAvoy, from Edinburgh, purchased the jabs on the internet in the hope of shedding belly fat — despite weighing just 8st (51kg).

After shedding around 7lbs (3kg) in just a few weeks, the mother-of-three ordered another batch of the injections.

However, the 42-year-old beautician then suffered a severe allergic reaction, which saw her tongue swell up and her eyes burn, causing her to pass out.

After being rushed to hospital, medics informed her that she had suffered a severe allergic reaction to the injections, which can trigger organ failure in severe cases.

She said she feels ‘ashamed’ and warned that despite seeming like a ‘quick fix’, the pens are ‘dangerous’.

Ms McAvoy bought a ‘skinny jab’ online in April 2022, which was touted as a diabetes medicine that would trigger weight loss.

While it is unclear what drug Ms McAvoy believed she was taking, Ozempic has been available in the UK for diabetes patients since 2019 but can be prescribed off-label for weight loss. 

However, fake versions are being touted online amid a surge in demand after a swathe of celebrities credited Ozempic for shifting the scales and Wegovy, which contains the same ingredient but was made for weight loss, has been difficult to access amid shortages. 

Ms McAvoy was hoping to shed a few pounds from her stomach, which she said was ‘ridiculous’ because she weighed just 8st and ‘didn’t have any weight to lose’. However, she was ‘unhappy’ with how her body looked.

Ms McAvoy said: ‘I bought them through someone online, I didn’t look into it, I just trusted this person.

They were about £50 for two weeks worth and you would jab yourself every day.

‘It had been working well. I’d done it for two months and it worked in suppressing my appetite, I wasn’t eating as much, I lost about half a stone.’

However, on one occasion in the two-week period, her hands became itchy. She said the side effect eased with an antihistamine.

Ms McAvoy then ordered another batch in the hopes of shedding more weight.

She said the injections appeared exactly the same as the first lot she purchased and she jabbed herself in the stomach before setting off for work.

However, within seconds, she her tongue had become swollen, her skin felt itchy and her eyes ‘began to burn’ to the point that she struggled to open them.

Ms McAvoy said: ‘I knew I was having some kind of reaction so I took an antihistamine.

‘Then my heart started beating really fast and sweat was just pouring off me.

‘I remember being on all fours and my heart felt like it was about to explode, I knew something wasn’t right. I thought I was dying.’

Ms McAvoy said she then passed out and hit her head against the wall in her hallway, which left her with a concussion and a dislocated jaw. 

‘I went in and out of consciousness about four times. I really thought I was on my way out,’ she said.

She managed to phone her mother, who lives on the next street, and an ambulance.

After being rushed to hospital, Ms McAvoy said medics told her that she had suffered anaphylactic shock, her organs had started shutting down and that she had nearly died.

The life-threatening allergic reaction can be caused by drugs, food or insect stings and triggers swelling of the throat and tongue, difficulty breathing and fainting.

It needs to be treated in hospital immediately, where patients may receive an adrenaline injection or drip, oxygen and fluids. 

Ms McAvoy said: ‘I was terrified, I felt ashamed. I’m a single mum with three kids, I should’ve known better. I wasn’t setting an example I wanted to set for my kids.’

Despite undergoing tests, doctors failed to discover what ingredients were contained in the ‘skinny jab’ and said she was lucky to be alive. 

UK health chiefs warned in October that fake versions of slimming jabs were triggering dangerous side effects.

Ozempic and Wegovy are prescribed on the NHS for type 2 diabetes and weight loss, respectively. However, Ozempic can be prescribed off-label for weight loss. 

The treatments spur weight loss by mimicking the actions of a hormone released in the gut after eating, called GLP-1.

As well as telling the pancreas to make more insulin, the GLP-1 hormone feeds back to the brain and makes users feel full. 

But such drugs are not without side effects. Users commonly complain of nausea, constipation and diarrhoea after taking the medication. 

Huge global demand has seen counterfeit versions flood the market. 

Officials said they had seized nearly 400 potentially fake Ozempic pens in 2023 and up to five Brits had been hospitalised with life-threatening side effects.

Ms McAvoy said: ‘I was led to believe that it was for diabetics but we have no idea what was in this.

‘The doctors said the antihistamine I took at the very start could’ve saved my life, I feel lucky to be alive.’

She is now warning others to steer clear of the ‘dangerous’ jabs that nearly killed her.

She said: ‘It makes me angry when I see people taking them or talking about them.

‘Everybody is so obsessed with their body appearance and I definitely fell into that category, and they’re completely taken advantage of.

‘Absolutely do not do it, there’s nothing positive that can come out of it.

‘It’s a quick fix but it’s dangerous — the injection is meant to be used for diabetes and it’s being used for the wrong thing.’