Medical weight loss is the fastest-growing service line in aesthetics — and the most actively policed marketing category in the industry. If your practice offers compounded GLP-1 medications, the words on your website matter as much as the medication itself.
A compounded semaglutide or tirzepatide preparation is not a generic drug. There is no FDA-approved generic of Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, or Mounjaro. A compounded formulation is a legally distinct, unapproved product prepared for an individual patient — and the FDA has publicly warned consumers and providers about compounded semaglutide.
That makes these phrases hazardous:
Each one invites two problems at once: a deceptive-advertising theory from the FTC, and a trademark problem with brand manufacturers, who have actively pursued clinics and telehealth platforms over exactly this language.
Brand-name GLP-1s earned their headline statistics — like substantial average body weight reduction — in trials of those specific products. Quoting those numbers to market a compounded program borrows substantiation your product doesn't have. The FTC's standard is simple: health claims need competent and reliable scientific evidence for the product you're actually selling.
"We offer physician-supervised medical weight-management programs, which may include prescription medication where clinically appropriate. Compounded medications are not FDA-approved and are not generic versions of brand-name drugs. Individual results vary."
Notice what this does: it leads with supervision, discloses the compounded status honestly, and promises nothing measurable. Practices worry this language won't sell — in practice, patients searching for medical weight loss respond to physician oversight, and honesty here is also a differentiator when competitors get warning letters.
Search your website and social captions for: generic, same as, same active ingredient, brand names next to the word compounded, and any percentage weight-loss figure. Every hit needs a rewrite or a removal.
This article is educational content about publicly available regulatory guidance. It is not legal advice; consult healthcare counsel for guidance specific to your practice.
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