Danger warning on 'Chinese viagra'
Updated on 07 April 2009
A Chinese "herbal Viagra" sold throughout the UK contains dangerous levels of hidden pharmaceutical drugs, medicine chiefs have warned.
Tests on the product, Jia Yi Jian, revealed huge doses of two drugs prescribed on the NHS for obesity and impotence.
Sibutramine, marketed as Reductil, is an appetite suppressant while tadalafil, commonly known as Cialis, treats erectile dysfunction in a similar way to Viagra.
The maximum dosages per tablet normally allowed for sibutramine is 15 milligrams and for tadalafil 20 milligrams.
But the red and black capsules of Jia Yi Jian seized by the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) each contained 68.1 milligrams of sibutramine and 50.06 milligrams of tadalafil.
The undeclared ingredients were deliberately put in the Chinese herbal medicine to con the public, says the MHRA.
The levels are said to be high enough to cause serious side effects, including heart and blood pressure problems. Adverse reactions could also occur with other prescription drugs, such as those used to treat blood pressure and heart disease, and some antidepressants.
An MHRA spokeswoman said an investigation was on-going and could not give details about how and where the product was seized.
She said Jia Yi Jian was sold both for weight loss and erectile dysfunction and widely available at stores selling traditional Chinese medicines.
The product, manufactured by Hunan Aimin Pharmaceutical Ltd, based in Hengyang, Hunan Province, China, is advertised as 100% herbal.
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