Gym bros are buying knockoffs of the strongest weight-loss drug ever from the gray market

Business Insider

Retatrutide, a powerful weight-loss drug from Eli Lilly, is still in clinical trials. Despite this, it's gaining popularity on TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, and Instagram, especially in fitness communities. People are buying unapproved versions labeled "reta" or "ret" from research labs that legally make chemicals for research use only.

Transcript

00:00The pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly is close to launching the strongest weight loss drug ever.

00:06And yet, years before it's approved, Jimbros are already buying retitrutide on the grey market to

00:12shred fat. Retitrutide is a GLP-1 in the same family as Ozempic and Manjaro. It's unique because

00:20it targets three hunger hormones, GLP, GIP and glucagon, whereas the other drugs on the market

00:27only target one or two. In theory, that means more staggering weight loss. Eli Lilly hasn't finished

00:34clinical trials on retitrutide and it isn't approved by the US Food and Drug Administration,

00:39so doctors can't prescribe it and pharmacies can't sell it. But over the past year, retitrutide has

00:45been gaining traction on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, particularly among fitness circles.

00:53People trying to cut fat while building muscle are buying powder labelled ret or retta from

01:00online research labs, which are legally allowed to manufacture compounds like this for research

01:07only. At home, people mix this powder with water, often using chat GPT to work out the ratio and then

01:14inject it into their muscles. We spoke to fans of grey market retta who post eye-popping photos on

01:21social media as proof that it works. They claim that the injectable they're taking helps them to

01:26shred fat without the muscle wasting that many people experience on Ozempic, Wigovi, Manjaro and

01:32Zetbound. While there is some evidence that Eli Lilly's retitrutide may have fewer side effects than

01:38other GLP-1s, buying an unregulated knockoff has serious risks. There's a risk of contamination

01:45and bacterial infection when you're buying a powder from an online research lab that is not subject to

01:51regulations. There's also a risk of contaminating the substance yourself when you're mixing it up

01:57at home. Plus, tests show that dosing varies widely across these powders, even when they're listed

02:03with the same dose. Is this legal? It's complicated. All of these powders are sold with the caveat that they

02:10are not for human consumption. Research labs are not legally allowed to sell medication for people

02:17to consume, but that does make it hard to regulate. A Brookings report earlier this year found that the

02:23majority of counterfeit GLP-1s come from wholesale manufacturers in China, which exist outside of US

02:29oversight. Eli Lilly told Business Insider in a statement that anyone purporting to sell retitrutide

02:35for human use is breaking the law. The company added, no one should consider taking anything

02:41claiming to be retitrutide outside of a Lilly-sponsored clinical trial. Still, the trend persists.

02:48Creators make new profiles, labs fly under the radar. It looks like this is not going away.

02:53For more on this trend, head to businessinsider.com.

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