The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a ruling against supplement company Kind Patches over an advert for its “GLP-1 Patch”. The paid-for Facebook ad, seen in March 2026, described the product as a way to “take control of your cravings and metabolism” and included claims such as “reduce hunger naturally” and “stay fuller for longer.” The video ad showed a woman applying a supplement patch from a packet labelled “GLP-1 Patches,” with the on-screen text reading, “POV: you’re a breastfeeding mum who wants to get snatched but can’t use those weekly injections.”
The ASA challenged whether the ad suggested that the product delivered the same medicinal effects as glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist medication. As the patch did not hold the necessary authorisation from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency or European Medicines Agency, the regulator concluded that the ad breached the Committee of Advertising Practice Code on medicinal claims.
The ASA outlined a second issue, stating the ad was irresponsible because it appeared to promote the product to breastfeeding mothers without appropriate medical consultation and suggested that women should prioritise weight loss during the post-partum period. Kind Patches said the product had been withdrawn from sale and that the post had been created by a third-party affiliate. The company said it had since removed the content and revised its internal approval procedures.
Speaking with Aesthetics, the ASA said, “It’s important that ads don’t blur the lines between licensed medicines and other products. If an ad creates the impression that a product works in the same way as a prescription medicine, consumers are likely to see it as making a medicinal claim. Unless the product is appropriately licensed, those claims are likely to break the rules. More broadly, advertisers should make sure that ads for weight-loss products are socially responsible and don’t exploit people’s insecurities or vulnerabilities.”
Aesthetics contacted Kind Patches for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.