Hanna Longstaff, The Eating Behaviour Expert, has challenged the sharp UK uptake of weight-loss injections and is calling for a deeper conversation around the root causes of over-eating and obesity.
As of early 2025, around 13% of adults in the US are using weight-loss jabs like Ozempic, Wegovy or Mounjaro. These GLP-1 agonists are now making significant inroads in the UK too, driven by social media buzz, celebrity endorsements and the hope of a quick-fix to a weight loss problem.
Yet behind the hype, leading eating behaviour expert Hanna Longstaff is sounding the alarm on the growing reliance on medication to solve what she believes is a deeper psychological and emotional issue.
“These drugs may suppress appetite, but they don’t address the real reasons why people overeat”, said Longstaff, founder of The MFB Method, a neuroscience-based coaching approach rooted in behaviour change.
“Many believe their weight is the problem – when in reality, it’s a symptom of a deeper unmet emotional need, they are trying to fill with food. Until the root cause is addressed, no jab, medication or crash-diet will offer a lasting solution. It’s time to talk about the cravings, coping and confidence-gaps that medication alone cannot fix.”
Longstaff warns that while weight-loss jabs might appear to offer a quick fix, they risk creating a pharmaceutical dependency without resolving the behaviours and beliefs that drive disordered eating. Studies show that most users start regaining weight within weeks of stopping treatment. “It’s not sustainable, and it was never meant to be,” she added. “These medications weren’t designed for lifelong use in otherwise healthy people. If we don’t fix the underlying patterns, the weight – and the emotional struggle – will keep coming back.”
Concerns are also growing about the wider impact on both physical and mental health. Users have reported side effects ranging from gastrointestinal issues to fatigue, low mood, kidney problems and loss of muscle mass – something Longstaff says could be especially dangerous for women. “We’re seeing people lose lean muscle, which compromises metabolic health and increases frailty. It’s not just about being lighter – it’s about being well.”
Financially, the trend could also place growing strain on the NHS. As more people access these medications through private prescriptions or online providers, the burden of treating potential side effects and complications is likely to rise. In 2024, global reports linked GLP-1 agonists to hospital admissions and even deaths, though investigations into causality are ongoing. “It’s a ticking time bomb,” said Longstaff. “The long-term impact – both personal and societal – is being massively underestimated.”
Culturally, Hanna believes the trend speaks to a deeper issue: the growing addiction to instant gratification. “We’ve trained our brains to crave fast solutions – whether it’s weight loss, food delivery, or scrolling for dopamine. But true change takes time. We must stop chasing shortcuts and start listening to what our bodies and behaviours are trying to tell us.”
Longstaff is calling for a nationwide shift towards behaviour-first, drug-free interventions that look at the whole person; not just their weight. Her MFB Method combines psychological tools and behavioural change to help individuals reconnect with their bodies and build a sustainable relationship with food.
“Weight loss should be the side effect of healing – not the goal,” she said. “Until we start treating the cause rather than the symptom, we will continue to see people caught in this cycle of despair and dependency. There is a better way, but we have to be willing to look deeper.”
