The sun is shining and it is around this time of year that people wish to start on a ‘fast fix’ diet, ready for the summer months. We get pulled in by the super models on the runway and celebs on the front of the magazines.
Lose 21lbs in a month? who wouldn’t want to do that BUT are people doing this the safe way? Almost everybody wishes to lose weight at some time or another, whether it be for the holidays or a special occasion, but what is the best and easiest way to do it?
When you use the search engine it comes up with a variety of different methods in losing weight – Local Slimming Clubs and Gym Memberships. Those methods take time though. Time that people these days don’t seem to have!
Internet sites promise the ‘fast fix’ approach that people want. With hundreds of testimonials, they must be good for you? Wrong!
After watching My5’s documentary on “Undercover – Nailing the Fraudsters” it states that 4 million pounds worth of pills have been seized over the past three years. It is said that 1 in 3 people trying to lose weight, have used these pills despite the risks that has been such strongly spoken about over the years.
In 2016 MHRA seized over 1.6 million fake or unlicensed medicines. Most of these tablets contain the substance Sibutramine. This was banned in the UK in 2010, due to adverse reactions such as; heart attacks, strokes and claiming 17 deaths. Other diet pills that are available on the internet contain DNP (Dinitrophenol) – this is a licenced product but not for weight loss, it is used a pesticide and herbicide which is not for human consumption. DNP has claimed up to 60 lives but it is still readily available.
After watching this programme, it comes to my attention that fake Slimming Pills is a growing and very dangerous trend.
Counterfeiters rely on the fact that people want a cheap easy fix and don’t want to involve their GP for fear of embarrassment. They set up a fake website offering us this magic elixir at heavily discounted prices.
In order to stay safe and ensure that the medicine we wish to purchase is genuine it is imperative that we follow a few simple steps:
- Check that the online pharmacy is genuine. Does it display this logo link? The EU common logo must be displayed on every web page that offers to sell human medicines to the public.
- Check the ingredients of products that claim to be ‘herbal’ or ‘all-natural’ they can actually contain chemical ingredients. Many contain Sibutramine – a medicine which was withdrawn from sale due to serious side effects including strokes and heart attacks, as mentioned above.
- Are the prices ‘’too good to be true’’? If so – they probably are.
If, after doing these checks, you should come across what you suspect to be a ‘fake’ website – report it via the MHRA website Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. The MHRA, the UK licencing body for medicines and medical devices, are currently running a fake meds campaign to combat the illegal trade in fake medicines.
Think! Is saving money by buying counterfeit diet pills, worth the cost of losing a life?