Telehealth peptide prescriptions expose longevity industry stretching the rules
An investigation by the ABC reveals that Australian wellness clinics are exploiting regulatory gaps to prescribe unproven anti-aging treatments like peptides and NAD+ infusions. The report highlights the risks consumers face when seeking longevity services without robust medical evidence.
Why it matters
It exposes the dangers of the unregulated 'longevity' industry and the potential for medical misinformation to reach vulnerable consumers via telehealth.
A wellness clinic's vitamin infusion. ( Four Corners: Ryan Sheridan )
Link copied Share Share article The booming industry selling Australians on the promise of living longer and turning back the clock on aging is exploiting significant gaps in health regulation, exposing consumers to risk.
Four Corners has identified about 100 operators that have opened in Australia, offering services they say will keep you young, beautiful, strong and full of energy. They advertise IV drips, red light therapy, cryotherapy and hyperbaric chambers.
Clinics are offering NAD+ infusions to fire up your mitochondria, boost your energy and keep you younger for longer.
These treatments may look and sound medical. But for many of the anti-aging claims, the sales pitch has raced ahead of the evidence. For example, with NAD+, despite little evidence of benefit in humans, there are laboratory research findings that it has a role in cancer.
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