POTENT TREATMENTS WE BOUGHT AT THE CLICK OF A MOUSE
GOOD Health chose six powerful, commonly used drugs to illustrate the prescription-only medicines available online without needing an NHS prescription upfront. But there are hundreds of others on sale and many more websites that dispense them — for this reason we have decided not to name the websites we used. In each case, we bought the smallest batch of drugs possible.
BLOOD PRESSURE DRUGS
84 x 10mg propranolol, £14.99 THIS beta-blocker is used for chest pain, high blood pressure and heart failure, in doses up to 300mg a day. It’s used for anxiety in low doses.
Side-effects can include blurred vision, depression, memory loss, low blood pressure and an asthma attack in susceptible people.
‘In high doses, propranolol is potentially fatal because blood pressure could plummet so much it triggers a heart attack or stroke,’ says Neal Patel from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.
‘Even in “normal” doses it could be life- threatening if taken by someone who doesn’t have high blood pressure.’
DIABETES DRUGS 56 x 5mg glipizide, £2.49 (plus £25 for a private prescription) THIS type 2 diabetes drug increases insulin produced by the pancreas, helping stabilise blood sugar levels. It should be taken only under GP guidance as side-effects can include weight gain, nausea, diarrhoea, but also a potentially fatal drop in blood sugar (hypoglycemia). CHOLESTEROL DRUGS 28 x 20mg simvastatin, 79p (plus £25 for private prescription) AROUND eight million Britons take a daily statin to control cholesterol. Side-effects may include severe muscle weakness, which can lead to damage to the kidney and liver. ‘Kidney impairment is a serious issue and the higher the dose the more likely it is,’ says Mr Patel. IMPOTENCE DRUGS 10 x 100mg Viagra, £29.55 THOUGH it may be available over the counter in future, this erectile dysfunction drug is prescription only in the UK.
Good Health ordered from what appeared to be a Canadian online pharmacy, but the supplier’s address on the parcel was in India and the drugs were called Nizagara — apparently, a generic copy.
Viagra is generally safe, says Mr Patel, but the biggest risk is receiving harmful fake drugs. ANTIDEPRESSANTS 60 x 20mg citalopram, £40 USED for depression, agoraphobia and anxiety, citalopram boosts levels of the brain chemical serotonin.
Side- effects include dry mouth, nausea, agitation, muscle pain, aggression and potentially fatal seizures. ACNE DRUGS 90 x 250mg tetracycline, £28 THIS antibiotic is used for acne and urinary tract infections. Our pills arrived without a leaflet, yet it increases risk of sunburn and has been linked to kidney and liver damage, gullet ulcers and an inflamed pancreas.