SINGAPORE – Advertisements for prescription-only medications for weight loss and other treatments are not allowed in all forms of media, the health authorities told The Straits Times.

This is after a spate of online ads appeared on social media to promote weight-loss treatments available on telehealth platforms.

In response to ST queries in early August, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) said on Nov 14 that they were reviewing the advertisements on weight-loss drugs flagged by ST and would take appropriate action for any breaches.

“These advertisements may not be conveyed in any form of media, including digital media such as websites, social media platforms and telehealth platforms,” they said in a joint statement.

ST has seen telehealth operators promoting their weight-loss programmes, along with glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs, on social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook since mid-July.

GLP-1 drugs, initially developed to treat diabetes, have gained widespread attention after doctors found them effective in helping patients shed the kilos.

In Singapore, these drugs are available only by prescription from a registered medical practitioner or pharmacist.

They can also be prescribed via telemedicine, with Saxenda being the most common GLP-1 drug offered by telehealth platforms here. It is a daily injectable and is administered using a pen.

Advertisements for such prescription-only medicine are not allowed under the Health Products (Advertisement of Specified Health Products) Regulations 2016.

HSA published a document on Nov 7 for telemedicine providers on regulations regarding the advertisements of health products.

In it, the authority said that publication of any information that promotes the sale or use of a health product, whether directly or indirectly, is considered an advertisement.

The reference to any health products or the featuring of such products – whether named, through an image, or implied through descriptions of a specific health product – may constitute an advertisement, it said.

In the online advertisements seen by ST, the telehealth operators either featured the Saxenda pen with its label covered, or used a blue pen that resembles the product.

Some operators called it a “skinny pen” or “weight-loss pen”, or referred to it as “Sxnda”.

MOH and HSA said: “Public...