TENS of thousands more obese Brits could get NHS weight loss help online as clinics struggle to cope with demand.
Health watchdog, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, has proposed four app and web weight management services for England.
It said doctors cannot keep up with the number of patients needing to slim down.
People who are obese and have a related health problem, like type 2 diabetes, could be eligible.
The services offer professional medical help without patients getting off the sofa.
Some will even be prescribed game-changing weight loss drugs like Ozempic online – as long as they stick to a diet and workout plan, too.
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NICE said 48,000 people could be eligible, saving 145,000 hours of doctors’ time.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay said: “The use of these apps will improve access to support that, alongside life-changing drugs, can help tackle obesity – which costs the NHS billions every year and is the second biggest cause of cancer.”
At least one in four adults in England are obese and it is linked to a range of diseases including type 2 diabetes, cancer, heart disease and stroke.
Mark Chapman, director of digital evaluation at NICE, said: “Traditional face-to-face services treating people living with obesity are unable to keep up with demand.
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“Waiting lists are long, some areas don’t have a service, and patients need a solution.”
The services suggested by NICE are called Liva, Oviva, Roczen and Second Nature.
The agency will hold a consultation on rolling them out and said it would monitor their use for four years to check how well they work.
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