A flier advertising the herbal viagra red flagged by NDA. PHOTO/FILE
|National
Prime
NDA raises red flag over ‘Herbal Viagra’
What you need to know:
- The drug authority has been struggling to address the influx of unapproved, counterfeit and adulterated herbal medicines.
The National Drug Authority (NDA), has raised a red flag over sexual-arousing herbal medicine manufactured by a Kampala-based company Eloipharm (U) Ltd.
In an interview with this publication yesterday, Mr Abiaz Rwamwiri, the spokesperson of the authority, accused the maker of the medicine of rushing the product to the market and sharing information about it before approval.
Mr Abiaz said they rejected the initial name of the product and the list of what the product can do when the maker presented it before the authority.
He said the rejected information is, however, still circulating on social media.
“The main problem has been sneaking the product to the market before it is approved and after the regulation it confuses the public,” Mr Rwamwiri said.
He added: “The maker also made alarming claims that the product can solve erectile dysfunction and increase water in women –these claims are far-fetched. So we changed that the product helps to improve male and female vitality.”
In the NDA register local traditional herbal human register as of May 2023, the herb was approved by the authority under the product name “Elo-Enjo” instead of “Elo-Enjoy” which the maker had proposed.
The maker of the product, Dr Stephen Lutoti, yesterday told Monitor that NDA changed the product’s name.
“The issue of the product name is trivial. I would be interested if there were concerns around ingredients and safety of the product,” Dr Lutoti said.
Mr Rwamwiri said that even for approved products, advertising is regulated by the authority and the manufacturer should get prior clearance.
However, Dr Lutoti said they want to inform clients about what the product does as it is with other synthetic drugs.
Counterfeit
NDA has in the past been struggling to address the influx of unapproved, counterfeit and adulterated herbal medicines and synthetic drugs as businessmen aim to maximise sales. Counterfeit or adulterated herbal medicines, synthetic drugs and beverages associated with fertility have been some of the most prevalent in the market.
Last year, the NDA has said it suspended the production and distribution of alcoholic products sold under the brand name “Stronger Weekend” because of their viagra content.
Even in 2021, M-Magix coffee with erectile dysfunction drug sildenafil citrate was also detected and banned by NDA.
Dr James William Tamale, the NDA head of regional offices, explained that the manufacture of such adulterated products is driven by market demands.
“People will always work based on people’s psychology and what people need or think they need and try to do that. And in so doing, they break laws as they are doing now. But it is the duty of various regulatory agencies to carry out their roles to mitigate dangers,” he said.
