Harmful substances in foreign supplements sold online

By Bahk Eun-ji

Hazardous chemicals were found in one out of five dietary supplements bought on foreign websites recently, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Monday.

The regulator surveyed 109 products sold via foreign websites over the three months since April, and found that 20 contained harmful substances.

Twelve of the 20 were dietary products, five were to enhance sexual performance, and three were for strengthening muscles.

The regulator said dietary supplements such as Supergenic and Max-Slim contained harmful chemicals, including reductil and yohimbin.

Reductil is known to cause high blood pressure and constipation. The government has banned distribution since 2010. Yohimbin is used on animals recovering from anesthesia.

The five for sexual enhancement products, including MACA Man and TestoJack 200, contained icariin, which is used as an aphrodisiac. SuperLean and Testogen-XR, which are for muscle enhancement, contained yohimbin and icariin.

The ministry has blocked access to websites selling the dietary supplements.