Vitamin Injection Consultations on Edgware Road, London

What are vitamin injections?

A vitamin injection is a small amount of liquid vitamin given with a fine needle, most often into the muscle at the top of the arm. The injection itself takes seconds. Most of the appointment is the conversation before it.

People often confuse vitamin shots with drips. A drip runs a larger volume of fluid into a vein over a longer sitting, while an injection is one quick dose.

What to know first

Some injectable vitamins are prescription-only medicines in the UK, which is why we never treat vitamin injections as an off-the-shelf purchase. Whether one is appropriate for you is decided at your consultation, and it may not be.

If you think you might be low in a vitamin, or you have symptoms that worry you, please speak to your GP. A blood test is the way to find out, and some causes of low vitamin levels need medical investigation and ongoing NHS care. A wellness injection at a clinic is not a replacement for that.

Which vitamin injections are available?

We don't publish a fixed menu or prices for vitamin injections, because what we can offer you depends on your health history and on the consultation. Your practitioner will tell you which options are suitable, what each contains and why.

Common questions to bring along include:

• Which vitamin is being suggested, and what dose
• Where on the body it will be injected
• How often, if at all, it would make sense to repeat it
• What side effects to look out for afterwards

Who should not have one, or should see their GP first

We do not claim that an injection will change how you feel, and we will be straightforward with you if we think it is not worthwhile.

An injection may not be suitable, or may need your GP's input first, in these circumstances:

• Pregnancy or breastfeeding
• Allergy to any ingredient, or a past reaction to a vitamin injection
• Bleeding disorders or blood-thinning medication, which can make intramuscular injections unsuitable
• Certain conditions affecting the eyes, blood or kidneys, depending on the vitamin
• Already taking high-dose supplements or receiving injections from your GP

What happens at your appointment

Appointments are booked as 40 minutes, which leaves plenty of room for questions on a first visit.

1. Health questions: you tell us about your medical history, medicines, supplements and allergies.
2. Assessment: the practitioner decides with you whether an injection is appropriate, and which one.
3. Consent: the contents, dose, cost and possible side effects are explained before you agree.
4. Injection: the skin is cleaned and the vitamin is given into the upper arm muscle, usually in a few seconds.
5. Before you go: a plaster goes on and you are asked to wait briefly so we can check you feel fine.

After your vitamin injection: side effects and aftercare

You can usually return to work or your plans straight away. Leave the plaster on for a few hours and avoid rubbing the area hard. How people feel afterwards differs, so we do not set expectations about effects.

Possible side effects will be discussed at your consultation. If you have any difficulty breathing, swelling of the face, lips or throat, a widespread rash or feel faint, call 999 or go to A&E straight away, then tell the clinic. For other worries, call or message us, or call NHS 111 if you cannot reach us.

• Soreness, redness or a small bruise at the injection site
• A temporary ache in the arm for a day or so
• Occasionally, mild nausea, headache or a change in urine colour, depending on the vitamin
• Rarely, an allergic reaction

Vitamin injection prices at ZARA

Vitamin Injections are priced after a face-to-face prescriber consultation. The cost depends on the injection agreed at your consultation, and your final plan and price are confirmed before anything is given.

You can see our other treatments on the full list of treatments and prices.

Getting here from Maida Vale, Lisson Grove and St John's Wood

Our door at 304 Edgware Road is about 50 metres from Edgware Road (Bakerloo line) station, so anyone on the Bakerloo line from Maida Vale or Warwick Avenue can step off the train and be with us in a minute or two.

Neighbours in Lisson Grove and around Church Street Market are within a few minutes' walk, and St John's Wood is about a mile away. We open until 8pm Monday to Saturday, and from 1pm to 5pm on Sundays and bank holidays.