By GATONYE GATHURAPosted Tuesday, February 17 2009 at 20:03
Kenyan men may be courting death by using widely-advertised drugs to enhance s*xual prowess. Many of the drugs, mostly advertised as herbal preparations, may actually contain ingredients used in conventional drugs and that should only be dispensed by a physician.
In Singapore, four men died recently and another 150 hospitalised with dangerously low levels of blood sugar after using s*x enhancing drugs laced with diabetes medicine and an active ingredient used in the manufacture of Cialis and Viagra.
The deaths came barely two weeks after a local pharmacologist, Dr Lumbi M’nabea of Healthylink Limited, warned that some of the heavily-advertised s*x enhancing herbal products promising instant results could be laced with conventional pharmaceutical ingredients.
Dr M’nabea, who consults for private crime investigators, insurers and families in doubt of postmortem examination results, said he had in the past six months been confronted with cases of sudden deaths or heart attacks of otherwise healthy males.
“Some family members refuse to believe pathology results indicating their kin died from effects of s*x enhancing drugs and will consequently want a second opinion.”
In an ongoing investigation, Dr M’nabea said he has on behalf of a client, who suffered some side effects, commissioned the Drug Analyses Research Unit of the University of Nairobi to analyse several products from the market.
“Our suspicions are that the samples may be spiked with ingredients from conventional pharmaceuticals,” he said. According to Dr D.G. Nyamo, a lecturer at the university, they will be carrying out the relevant tests, but he said results can only be given to the requesting clients, that is Dr M’nabea.
In an interview on Tuesday, Dr M’nabea, said though he could not divulge the case details because of doctor patient confidentiality, pathologists are increasingly seeing cases of deaths or medical complications suspected to be occasioned by wrongly administered s*x enhancing drugs.
In the Singapore case drugs claiming to be safe herbal products have been found to contain glibenclamide which is used to treat people who suffer from diabetes and can be lethal if given to the wrong people. The herbs were also found to contain high levels of the active ingredient in Viagra, sildenafil citrate.
Dr M’nabea said users are being lured by promises of instant libido through strong and persistent media advertising. “There are genuine herbalists but the get-rich-quick-Johnny-come-latelies are a danger to Kenyans and the government regulatory authorities have failed to protect its people.”
Our survey indicated four main classes of s*xual enhancing drugs being sold in the city; the legally registered and prescribed Cialis and Viagra, generics mostly unregistered and of unknown quality, genuine but slow working herbs and herbal drugs promising instant action.
The latter, says Dr M’nabea in an alert sent to media houses two weeks ago, are the most dangerous because they could be no more than a cocktail of pharmaceutical drugs prepared and dispensed by unqualified people.
“My contention is that these herbalists buy generic Viagra variants like Vega, which sell at about Sh100 per pill, crush them, mix with herbs and sell it expensively to unsuspecting clients. In most cases this will give a kick but may as well kill you.”
Ordinarily, the consulting pharmacologist says, natural products will rarely possess high concentrations of the active ingredients compared to the more refined conventional medicines and hence their action is gradual, so advertisements promising instant action raise a red flag.
According to another medical consultant, Dr Kamau Kinyenje, pharmaceuticals containing substances such as sildenafil citrate should be administered by qualified medical personnel.
The drugs for erectile dysfunction, explains Dr Kinyenje, are rapidly absorbed into the system with maximum observed plasma concentrations reached within 30 to 120 minutes.
“While this may give a lift, the landing could be bumpy. That is why in many cases, girls tell of the man dying in the act when the blood pressure comes down suddenly,” says Dr M’nabea.
The ease with which clients get the drugs and the promise of fun is the main attraction. The advertisers promise to deliver at your door step, office or drinking place.
Posted By: Marta Fernandez
Friday, February 20th 2009 at 8:11PM
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