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The Department of Health today (July 19)) called on people not to buy or use a brand of slimming product called "Chao Nongsu Qingzhi Jiaonang" which contained Western drug ingredients and may cause side effects.
The product, packed under the name of "OPC CARE", was not registered under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance in Hong Kong.
The department obtained a sample of the product from a woman for investigation after receiving an enquiry earlier this year about the safety of the product. The department's investigation revealed that the product was brought to Hong Kong from the Mainland by this woman. Upon laboratory analysis, the product was found to contain sibutramine and mazindol.
A department spokesman said people who had been using the product were advised to immediately stop taking it and to seek medical attention if they felt unwell.
The department has no record of the product having been imported into Hong Kong for sale.
Sibutramine is used as appetite suppressant. It can cause increased blood pressure and heart rate. People with heart diseases should not take it. Mazindol is a psychotropic substance with central nervous system stimulant property. It can cause nervousness, irregular heart beat, insomnia, dizziness, headache and abdominal cramps.
Under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, products containing sibutramine and mazindol must be registered before sale and can only be sold on a doctor's prescription and under the supervision of a pharmacist.
Anyone who is in possession of the product concerned should dispose of them or submit them to the DH's Pharmaceutical Service at the third floor, Public Health Laboratory Centre, 382 Nam Cheong Street, Kowloon during office hours.
The spokesman said people should control their weight by a balanced diet and adequate physical exercise. Before taking drugs for weight reduction or lowering blood lipid, they should first consult their family doctors.
Ends/Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Issued at HKT 17:36
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