New weight-loss jabs could get people “back into work” to boost the economy, the prime minister has said.
Sir Keir Starmer said injections could also help reduce pressure on the NHS.
“I think these drugs could be very important for our economy and for health,” the prime minister told BBC Breakfast.
“This drug will be very helpful to people who want to lose weight, need to lose weight, very important for the economy so people can get back into work.
“Very important for the NHS because, as I’ve said time and again, yes, we need more money for our NHS, but we’ve got to think differently.
“We’ve got to reduce the pressure on the NHS. So this will help in all of those areas.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has suggested the jabs could be given to unemployed people to help them return to the workplace.
Mr Streeting, writing in The Telegraph, said: “Our widening waistbands are also placing significant burden on our health service, costing the NHS £11bn a year – even more than smoking. And it’s holding back our economy.
“Illness caused by obesity causes people to take an extra four sick days a year on average, while many others are forced out of work altogether.”
The health secretary also told Sky News’ Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge on Monday the jabs should not be used to get the “Instagram perfect body”.
Researchers will examine the “real-world effectiveness” of Mounjaro, also known as tirzepatide, over a five-year period, as officials announced plans for new trials of the impact of the injections on getting people back to work.
A study by Health Innovation Manchester and Lilly, the world’s largest pharmaceutical company, will examine the drug’s impact on weight loss, diabetes prevention, the prevention of obesity-related complications and the impact on NHS use.
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It will also assess whether the drug will reduce people being forced out of work and if it has any impact on cutting sick days among employed people.
A previous study found Mounjaro, hailed as the “King Kong” of weight-loss jabs, helped people lose an average of 21% of their body weight over 36 weeks.
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Thousands denied weight loss jab due to slow NHS rollout
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Wegovy rollout slower than expected
Obesity costs the NHS about £6.5bn a year and is the second biggest preventable cause of cancer.
Studies show people lose on average 15% of their body weight within months of starting treatment with Wegovy, the brand name for semaglutide, which is also known as Ozempic.
The drug mimics a natural hormone and people feel fuller faster and for longer.
But thousands of people who could benefit from it are being denied access due to a slower than planned rollout in the health service, an investigation by Sky’s science correspondent Thomas Moore found.