WHEN doctors told her she was overweight, former Big Brother star Narinder Kaur took a decision that could have claimed her life.
The 52-year-old, who was not eligible for weight-loss jabs on the NHS, went home and ordered some online.
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And after injecting more than double the recommended dose, she felt so sick she thought she was dying.
Mum-of-two Narinder, who appeared on Big Brother in 2001, says: “Hearing those words from the GP was the final straw. It was official: I was fat.
“Stupidly, I ordered drugs online. That was the biggest mistake ever.
“I used weight-loss jabs without any professional medical guidance and I put my life at risk.
“I haven’t spoken about any of this before today because I felt embarrassed at having been so irresponsible and reckless.”
Yesterday, we revealed how Towie star Gemma Collins is a fan of the jabs after dropping two dress sizes — and 2st — by resorting to Mounjaro injections after years of failed diets.
But using similar jabs last November proved nearly fatal for Narinder, and now she wants to share her terrifying ordeal as a stark warning to anyone considering taking them.
She says: “I have always been curvy — at my heaviest I was a size 14 which is pretty big for my height of 5ft 1in. I’ve tried all the diets — Atkins, WeightWatchers, Slimming World, Slimfast, those tummy-toning machines.
“I’ve been trolled for having fat rolls when I posted holiday snaps of myself in a bikini.
“When I came out of the Big Brother house in 2001 people called me chunky and said I should never wear short skirts.
‘Easy to lie’
“Looking back, I did look quite chubby, but at that time heroin chic was fashionable and even being a size eight wasn’t thin enough — everyone aspired to be a size zero.
“A magazine compared me to Kylie Minogue, just because we were wearing similar dresses, and that made me feel so fat and ugly that I didn’t get out of bed for a week.”
TV panellist Narinder dropped to a size six after her son Jeevan, now 19, was born, but the scales gradually crept back up again following the birth of daughter Deevah, now 17.
She hit the menopause last year and found it harder than ever to keep her weight under control. With the scales at 9st 2lb, Narinder was told she was overweight late last year.
She said: “In mid-November last year I was photographed coming out of the gym after a workout.
“I had been feeling alright about myself generally but when I saw those pictures I was horrified — I thought I looked huge, I hated my thighs and decided I needed to lose weight before Christmas.
Buying the jabs took less than ten minutes, I didn’t need an appointment with a private doctor
Narinder
“Clearly my usual diet and exercise routine was not working. I remember so clearly that was the day I decided to ask the doctor to prescribe me weight loss jabs”
Having heard about “miracle” injections such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro, Narinder asked for a prescription, but was turned down.
So she went home and immediately placed an order with an online pharmacy, answering a handful of simple questions about her height, weight and medical history.
She says: “Buying the jabs took less than ten minutes, I didn’t need an appointment with a private doctor, to speak to anyone or even leave the house.
“It would have been easy to lie on the form, but I didn’t fudge anything.
“I just uploaded an old photo of me looking shocking, paid £120 and it was a done deal. The drugs arrived a couple of days later.
Earlier this week an undercover reporter — who at 16 was ineligible for weight-loss drugs — revealed in The Sun how she was able to buy them simply by amending her online prescription application to say she was 18.
When Narinder’s pack containing four weeks’ supply of Wegovy arrived, she immediately injected the recommended first dose of 0.25ml.
But she felt no effects for the first few days.
Users are advised to remain on the lowest dose for a minimum of two months to give the body time to adjust to the powerful drug, before increasing the amount slowly.
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‘Desperate’
But a week later — and without any medical guidance — Narinder decided to double her dose to 0.5mg.
She explains: “I was desperate to lose weight before Christmas, and I felt sure I could handle a higher dose.
“I’d read horror stories about these jabs but I never thought it would affect me badly like that.
“I was just desperate not to think about food all the time, and that urge outweighed the risk for me.
Everything you need to know about fat jabs
Weight loss jabs are a hot media topic at the moment, with hundreds of success stories from people who shed the pounds.
In March 2023, the NHS announced it would make Wegovy, a drug made by Danish firm Novo Nordisk, available on prescription to thousands of obese Brits.
It contains the drug semaglutide, which is said to have helped reality star Kim Kardashian and X boss Elon Musk lose weight.
Wegovy, which helped a third of people reduce their weight by 20 per cent in trials, is now available from pharmacies like Boots.
How do they work?
The jabs work by suppressing your appetite, making you eat less and therefore lose weight.
To do this, semaglutide mimics the role of a natural hormone, called GLP-1.
GLP-1 is part of the signalling pathway that tells your body you have eaten, and prepares it to use the energy that comes from your food.
London GP and founder of wellgoodwellbeing.com, Dr Zoe Watson, said: “Your body naturally produces an appetite regulating hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1.
“These jabs work by regulating your appetite, which can lead to eating fewer calories and losing weight.”
Aren’t they diabetes drugs?
Semaglutide, the active drug in Wegovy, was originally sold under the name Ozempic specifically for diabetes patients.
But people started noticing it helped suppress their appetites, stopping them eating as much and helping them shed the pounds.
Novo Nordisk then developed Wegovy, which contains the same chemical but at higher doses specifically to aid weight loss.
Wegovy is not prescribed for diabetes patients.
Can I get them?
Wegovy is offered on prescription to obese adults given specialist weight loss treatment.
The NHS currently also offers a similar drug called Saxenda, or liraglutide.
Both are only available throught specialist weight management services, which means you have to be referred to clinics led by experts.
GPs can’t prescribe them on their own, Dr Watson said.
The jabs have to be taken as part of an overall programme to help with lifestyle changes and psychological support to get the best effect from the medication prescribed.
Are there any risks?
Like all medicines, the jabs do not come without side effects.
Around half of people taking the drug experience gut issues, including sickness, bloating, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhoea.
Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and clinical consultant at patient.info, said: “One of the more uncommon side effects is severe acute pancreatitis, which is extremely painful and happens to one in 500 people.”
Other uncommon side effects include altered taste, kidney problems, allergic reactions, gallbladder problems and hypoglycemia.
What other options are there?
Mounjaro (brand name for tirzepatide) also came onto the market in early 2024.
Like Wegovy, tirzepatide stems from a drug originally designed to treat diabetes.
The weekly injection helped overweight people drop more than two stone in 18 months.
It is available to order with a prescription online from pharmacies including Superdrug and LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor.
It works in a similar way to Wegovy and Saxenda, but is more effective.
Dr Mitra Dutt from LloydsPharmacy says: “Based on clinical trials, 96 per cent of people were able to lose more than five per cent of their body fat using Mounjaro. In similar trials, 84 per cent of people lost more than five per cent of their body weight on Wegovy, and 60 per cent on Saxenda.
“Mounjaro works by activating two hormonal receptors (GIP and GLP-1), which enhance insulin production, improve insulin sensitivity, and work to decrease food intake.”
“When I did the injection, a bit of liquid leaked out on to my belly and I wasn’t sure how much had actually gone in, so I thought I should do it again.”
Narinder gave herself a second shot. Within two hours she was hit by waves of nausea and soon started vomiting so violently she was unable to walk and could not even keep water down.
She went straight to bed but by the next morning she felt far worse and could not face eating or drinking anything at all.
“Every smell turned my stomach,” she says. “I tried to go for a walk but could not avoid smells of food or cooking which made me feel terrible.
“By day three, I really thought I was going to die.
“It had been 72 hours and I still hadn’t managed a sip of water. I felt so weak I could hardly sit up or talk at all, and my hands felt floppy.
“I’ve had Covid and norovirus before but I have never felt so ill in my life. I actually thought my death was going to be caused by trying to get thin.”
Narinder called the NHS 111 helpline and was advised to go straight to A&E.
I actually thought my death was going to be caused by trying to get thin
Narinder
When she arrived at the Whittington Hospital near her North London home, on the verge of collapsing, a nurse explained there was no cure and she would simply have to wait for the high dose of Wegovy to leave her system over the next few days.
Narinder says: “Until today I have not wanted to admit that I went to hospital and wasted NHS resources when there are so many people suffering with real injuries.
“I will never forget the mortification — and it was all my fault.”
Narinder was given steroids and anti-sickness tablets to help ease the nausea, but for the next ten days she survived on sips of Coca-Cola and managing to suck on one jelly sweet a day.
‘Nearly died of stupidity’
After four weeks she started to feel slightly better, but it was only at six weeks that she was able to eat normally again.
She says: “As well as the physical symptoms I suffered during those weeks when I was recovering, the drug also dampened my personality. I felt dull and depressed.
“I couldn’t even look at the area of the kitchen where we keep alcohol, and I’m usually the first to order a glass of Champagne.
“I lost tons of weight but I had no idea what I was doing.
“I haven’t touched the jabs since, I can’t even look at the box without feeling sick. I would never be tempted to try weight-loss injections again unless, perhaps, I was being closely monitored every week by a doctor.
“But even then I would be highly dubious. Nobody should be injecting themselves — it is far too easy to make a mistake with the dosing.
“I’m an intelligent woman with a law degree so if I managed to cock it up, so could anyone else.
“I felt I should have known better, but I have battled with my weight my entire life.
“Like millions of people, I was sick of starving myself and this seemed like an easy fix. But the effect of mis-dosing was so strong it simply was not worth it.
“Skinny jabs have scared me off quick-fix diets for life.
“It’s back to eating less and exercising more. I nearly died of stupidity.”
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GOOD AND BAD OF JABS
WEIGHT loss jabs work for many people if they have a genuine medical need – and they are also said to lower the risks associated with 42 conditions including stroke, dementia, liver cancer and cardiac arrest.
But they come with risks too, and make other illnesses more likely including arthritis and damage to the gut, pancreas and kidneys.
All of the jabs mimic the hormone glucagon-like peptide 1, which makes you feel full. But around half of people taking these drugs experience stomach issues, including sickness, bloating, acid reflux and constipation.
Other side-effects can include headaches, altered taste, kidney problems, allergic reactions, gallbladder issues and hypoglycaemia.
One of the more uncommon side-effects is severe acute pancreatitis, which is extremely painful and happens to one in 500 people. And in some women, taking semaglutide jabs has reportedly increased their chances of getting pregnant.
The frequency and severity of side-effects can vary, while the long-term effects of taking the jabs are still being studied.
