Viagra sales hit £4.3m in rush for over-the-counter pills

SALES of Viagra have hit £4.3million in three months, figures show.

The “little blue pills”, popular with men suffering erectile dysfunction are sold as Viagra Connect.

Their availability over-the-counter from chemists and supermarket pharmacies since March 27 followed a reclassification by the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency in November last year.

The UK was the first country to allow pharma group Pfizer’s sex pill to be bought without prescription.

Among those selling it are Boots, Superdrug, Asda, Tesco and Morrisons and it costs from £19.99 for four tablets to £113 for 28. The 60 per cent sales rise to June this year measured by analyst IRI suggests men are more confident about seeking treatment for the condition, said The Grocer trade magazine.

The NHS says 4.3 million men – one in five of the male population – suffer with erectile problems, particularly those aged over 40.

Chloe Humphreys-Page, IRI health and beauty analyst, said: “In the UK at least, consumers no longer have to visit their GPs to obtain a prescription on what can be a debilitating condition for many men.

“Greater accessibility to the drug will allow much quicker access for men seeking treatment without having to resort to purchasing it from dubious sources and unregulated websites.”