A weight loss product 'Ke Le' which was sold online has been found to contain two undeclared potent medicinal ingredients – which could pose serious health risks in individuals with heart conditions.
The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) is alerting members of the public not to purchase or consume the product, which is promoted as an appetite suppressant for weight loss.
The product was advertised and sold by a local female seller in her 30s, on a Facebook page named ‘S.C.L.T.W’. The seller posted personal testimonies and photos of herself before and after taking ‘Ke Le’ (‘可乐’) and claimed to have lost about 11kg.
When HSA enforcement officers raided her home, they found packets of ‘Ke Le’ (‘可乐’) hidden among other food items in her refrigerator. HSA seized the products and directed the seller to remove the product listing from her Facebook page and stop the sale of the product immediately. The seller is currently assisting in HSA’s investigations.
The two ingredients founds in the product, phedrine and pseudoephedrine, are used as medicines to relieve blocked nose and cough for the treatment of common cold, flu and allergies.
Based on the seller’s recommended dosing instructions, the amount of ephedrine taken per day by unknowing consumers would have been more than four times the limit for the treatment of common cold, flu and allergies.
Such dangerously high levels of ephedrine can cause serious and life-threatening adverse effects, especially in consumers with existing medical conditions and when taken together with caffeine-containing products. These adverse effects include increased heart rate, anxiety, insomnia, high blood pressure, stroke, seizures and even death.