When a reaction needs emergency help
[a]Severe allergic reactions can become life-threatening very quickly.
Signs can include trouble breathing, trouble swallowing or a swollen tongue.
Call 911 for emergency help with a severe allergic reaction.
Claims that need a closer look
[b]Medicines in the U.S. are reviewed by an agency named the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The medicine rules in this comparison are as of September 26, 2026.
- No prescription needed
Federal law, which applies across the country, is broken when a prescription medicine is provided without a valid prescription.
- Approval claimed for a made-to-order product
Compounding means making a medicine to order; such a product has not been FDA-approved.
- Registration used as proof of approval
FDA registration records a business; it does not grant approval to that business or its medicines.
Gaps you can check for yourself
[c]FDA flags online weight-medicine services when patients cannot ask a licensed doctor questions once the medicine has arrived.
The agency has found labels naming pharmacies that do not exist, and labels naming real pharmacies that did not make the product.
Ask for the pharmacy name, then check its state licence record.
For injectable weight medicines requiring refrigeration, FDA advises you not to use a shipment if it arrives warm or lacks enough cooling.
Storage needs differ by product; not every peptide medicine needs a fridge.
Ask the pharmacy that filled your prescription to check a storage concern before you use the medicine.
Ask about the exact medicine's unwanted effects
A side effect is an unwanted effect while taking a medicine.
Ask which effects need a call to the doctor and which need urgent help. Ask who will answer outside the usual visit time.
Keep this in mind
Look for a valid prescription, a checkable pharmacy and a clear way to get answers after the visit.
Find the licence-checking routePage notes
- [a]
- [b]
- [c]
- [d]