UAE, February 17, 2018 - The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) has issued six circulars to the relevant bodies to withdraw a baby food product which could be contaminated with Salmonella according to the request of the manufacturer;  The circular also warns against the use of unlicensed addiction remedies and against the use of some cosmetics containing a high concentration of mercury, a herbal formula for weight loss, nutritional supplements that cause high blood pressure and skin whitening products. The Ministry requested the concerned parties to take necessary measures to withdraw the products from the market and prevent their circulation and import, if available. These products are not registered with the Drug Department at MOHAP.

H.E. Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing, and Chairman for the Supreme National Pharmacovigilance Committee, emphasized that the Ministry is in the process of building quality and safety systems according to international standards, providing legislative framework, governance and providing regulatory services for the health sector and is constantly monitoring all health products including pharmaceuticals, nutritional supplements with medical claims, and is constantly warning and alerting community members not to use falsified products. He also urged authorities to stop any importation and withdraw from the market if it had been made available in the country.

Dr Al Amiri noted that those affected by these counterfeit products should inform the Ministry of Health and Prevention or the official health authorities to take appropriate action. In case of any side effects, the ministry should be informed via  the ADR side effects form available at http://www.cpd-pharma.ae or thruogh the following addresses: Tel: 02-3201448 or fax 02-3201947 or e-mail pv@moh.gov.ae or toll-free number 80011111.

Withdrawal of baby food possibly contaminated with Salmonella microbes

Dr. Al Amiri highlighted the circular issued for the withdrawal of baby food produced by the French company LACTALIS International, further to Circular No. 15247 of 2017, knowing that the manufacturer has voluntarily withdrawn all batches of the products that have been packed in Craon plant because of possible contamination with Salmonella Agona which causes fever and diarrhea.

The product is under registration in the Drug Department of the Ministry of Health and Prevention and the authorized agent is requested to withdraw the said product from the country’s markets. All users of the product must stop using it under the Ministerial decree No (366) for the year 2010 regarding the announcement of withdrawal, suspension or prevention of the circulation of pharmaceutical and medical products.

Warning against un-accredited products that claim to treat substance abuse

Al Amiri said that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission have issued a warning to marketers and distributors of 12 products with deceptive claims about their ability to help treat opiate addiction. The marketing and sale of these products is carried out illegally and may be unsafe and ineffective and may contain unknown components or contaminants.

The following is a list of withdrawn products and their producing companies: Opiate Freedom Center (Opiate Freedom 5-Pack); U4Life LLC (Mitadone); CalmSupport LLC (CalmSupport); TaperAid (TaperAid and TaperAid Complete); Medicus Holistic Alternatives LLC (Natracet); NutraCore Health Products LLC (Opiate Detox Pro); Healthy Healing LLC (Withdrawal Support); Soothedrawal Inc. (Soothedrawal); Choice Detox Center Inc. (Nofeel); GUNA Inc. (GUNA-ADDICT 1); and King Bio Inc. (AddictaPlex).

All these companies use websites to promote their products to ‘treat’ or ‘prevent disease’ and to make fraudulent claims. Therefore, the above products are requested to be withdrawn from the market and prevented from being traded and imported, if available. These products are not registered with the Drug Department of the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

Warning of cosmetics that they contain high concentration of mercury

He cited the warning from Dubai Municipality regarding the withdrawal of three Chinese cosmetic products used for bleaching and clearing the skin, which proved that it contained a high concentration of globally-banned mercury following an analysis of samples of products at the Dubai Central Laboratory of Dubai Municipality. These products are Yalan Cream, Slimming Body Capsule Plus and Hao Meng Specific Wipe off Fleck Cream. These products are not registered with the Drug Department of the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

Warning against herbal drinks for weight loss that could cause high blood pressure

A warning against the use of the product Tarty Slim Plus Capsules from the Thailand-based company Rawinnipa has also been issued. The Environmental Health & Safety Control Sector at the Municipality of Dubai analyzed the above product, which is used as herbal supplement for weight loss, and discovered that it contains undeclared pharmaceutical substances, namely Sibutramine-Desmethylsibutramine. Sibutramine can cause high blood pressure and / or increased heart rate in some patients and can be a major risk to patients with heart disease, arrhythmia or stroke, so immediate action should be taken to withdraw the product from the markets and prevent its circulation and import if available. The product is not registered with the Drug Administration of the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

Warning against dietary supplements and sexual enhancement product for men that cause a sharp drop in blood pressure

The Assistant Undersecretary pointed out that the Ministry received a warning from the Department of Health Abu Dhabi about the product Golden Bull Capsules of the Italian company: Don Vigaron, which is used as a supplement and sexual enhancer for men, where the results of the analysis showed that the product contains an undeclared drug ingredient, Sildenafil. This substance can cause a severe drop in blood pressure that may reach a dangerous level and can be a major risk to patients with heart disease or diabetes or overweight, especially those who take drugs containing nitrate. So immediate action should be taken to withdraw the product from the markets and prevent its circulation and import if available. His Excellency noted that the product is not registered with the Drug Department of the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

Warning against bleach preparations containing harmful ingredients or contaminants

He cautioned against Flawless Beauty's skin whitening product, which is sold on www.flawlessbeautyandskin.com as the US Food and Drug Administration and the manufacturer have withdrawn all glutathione products used as bleach products, marketed either alone or with vitamin C and Sterile water. The marketing and sale of these products is carried out in illegal ways and may be unsafe and ineffective and may contain unknown components or contaminants. The following is a list of withdrawn products:

1. Relumins Advanced Glutathione kits w/ 900mg vials
2. Relumins Advanced Glutathione kits w/ 1500mg vials
3. Relumins Advanced Glutathione kits w/ 3000 vials
4. Relumins Vitamin C Solvent ampules
5. Tatiomax Gluatathione Whitening kits w/ 1400mg vials
6. Saluta Glutathione Whitening kits w/ 600mg vials
7. Saluta Glutathione Whitening kits w/ 1200mg vials
8. Saluta Glutathione Whitening kits w/ 1800mg vials
9. Laroscorbine Platinum Vitamin C with Collagen – 1100mg
10. Tationil Glutathione Whitening 10 vial kits
11. Tationil Glutathione Whitening (5 sets of 10 vial kits)
12. Laennec Human Placenta Whitening kits – 2ml vials
13. Reiki Glutathione Whitening kits
14. TAD Glutathione Whitening kits w/ 600mg vials
15. TP Drug Laboratories Vitamin C ampules
16. Sterile water ampules
17. Ling Zhi capsules

Note that these products are not registered with the Drug Department in the Ministry of Health and Prevention, but in order to ensure the safety of the community, the Ministry decided to inform the concerned authorities to ensure that these products are not introduced to the country and for members of the community to take necessary action and to avoid paying attention to false claims promoted through social media.