SINGAPORE : The number of people diagnosed with anorexia in
Singapore due to slimming pill abuse has tripled in the last four
years.
And this could be due to the ease with which they can get their
hands on prescriptive slimming pills - without prescriptions.
Doctors say an increasing number of Singaporeans find over the
counter slimming drugs just not effective enough.
So, they travel overseas or go online to buy large quantities of
controlled obesity treatment drugs - but at what price?
Just across the Causeway, Johor Baru in Malaysia has a thriving
pharmaceutical business servicing Singaporeans.
At Taman Sentosa, for example, pharmacists say more than 50 percent
of their clients are Singaporeans.
Appetite suppressants like Reductil and Duromine, which also boosts
the metabolism rate, are popular buys.
When asked, the pharmacists say they do not sell obesity treatment
drugs without a doctor's prescription.
But there is no lack of Singaporeans who try to get them!
One Malaysian pharmacist agreed that Singaporeans do come up with
all kinds of excuses to get the drugs.
But contrary to what the pharmacists say, it was not all that
difficult to buy these drugs without a prescription.
When this reporter first tried to purchase Reductil from a
pharmacy, the counter staff was at first reluctant and insisted on
seeing her doctor's prescription.
But when she offered to pay RM$30 extra, the counter staff happily
handed over the box of controlled drug.
The staff even asked her if she would like to purchase a few extra
boxes.
This reporter asked another pharmacist if she could purchase five
boxes of Reductil and another five boxes of Duromine?
He replied: "We have stock at the moment."
At another pharmacy, the reporter was told the prescription drugs
could be delivered to her in Singapore for 20 ringgit!
The ease with which the drugs can be obtained worries some
doctors.
At the Singapore General Hospital, six new anorexic patients seek
help every week because of slimming pills abuse.
It is a figure that has tripled since the year 2000.
Many also suffer other adverse side effects.
Duromine, whose chemical name is phentermine, can lead to a rapid
heart beat and high blood pressure. It also affects the central
nervous system. In most cases, it makes one edgy and
insomniac.
And if the consumer has an underlying tendency to psychosis, it can
tip him or her over to manic depression and hallucinations.
Duromine is banned in the United Kingdom.
The side effects of Reductil, whose chemical name is sibutramine,
are milder. But they also include constipation, insomnia, heart
palpitations and higher blood pressure.
Dr Lee Ee Lian, Consultant Psychiatrist at the Singapore General
Hospital, said: "You don't know what kind of underlying conditions
you have and whether it is safe for you to be taking it.
"One patient showed me that he actually bought it from his gym
trainer, where they could buy slimming products containing
ephedra
..slimming pills with ephedra have actually been
banned.
"This was particularly so following the death of a baseball player,
Steve Bechler from the Baltimore Orioles (in the US). He took
ephedra in an attempt to lose weight. Unfortunately, it gave him
heat stroke and he collapsed and died on the pitch."
Some may consider 230 ringgit or $95 for a box of Reductil, and 30
ringgit or $12 for a wafer of Duromine a much cheaper alternative
than slimming salons, and less painful than exercising.
But doctors warn such pill abuse can mean a lifetime of health
complications, and possibly death. - CNA/de
This is dangerous man...