SINGAPORE: A honey supplement was among three products found to contain substances not permitted for use in food, including tadalafil, a prescription medicine used to treat erectile dysfunction.
The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said in a media release on Tuesday (Aug 4) that the drug was detected in B Solution Honey (Liquid).
Tadalafil should only be taken under medical supervision, it added.
The packaging of the honey product, from Malaysia, directs consumers to take the contents in the sachets with water. The product also claims to “enhance vitality” and stamina.
Inappropriate use of tadalafil is dangerous and can increase the risk of serious adverse effects, including heart attack, stroke, headache, migraine, irregular heart rate and priapism, which refers to painful and exceedingly long erections.
It can also cause potentially life-threatening low blood pressure in people taking heart medications, especially those containing nitrates, SFA said.
The agency also detected steroid medicine dexamethasone in Jus Tuan Haji 1921, a product from Malaysia, and sennosides in Shaio-Ge Xian Li 365 S1 Botanical Beverage Mix Barley Seedling Powder from Taiwan.
Dexamethasone is used to treat various inflammatory conditions, and its side effects can include blurred vision, excessive hair growth, acne, menstrual irregularities, headache and Cushing’s syndrome, a disorder that occurs when the body produces too much of the hormone cortisol.
An overdose of dexamethasone may also cause psychosis, hallucinations and an electrolyte and fluid imbalance, SFA said.
Sennosides is used to relieve constipation, and its common side effects can include abdominal pain, spasms, diarrhoea and low potassium levels in the blood.
The agency said that prolonged use of the medication can cause dehydration and a lazy bowel, where bowel muscles become too relaxed, leading to less frequent bowel emptying and possible long-term constipation.