. . . as we expose cowboy chemists selling ‘trans DIY’ pills to teenagers
‘This is like playing Russian roulette’
SCHOOLCHILDREN who want to change sex are risking their lives by buying illegal hormone drugs online.
A Mail on Sunday investigation found that increasing numbers of boys under 16 are obtaining prescription-only oestrogen with frightening ease.
They opt for the hormone because it hinders hair growth, induces breast development and reduces muscle mass. But it can cause sexual dysfunction, type 2 diabetes and incontinence, and their effects can be irreversible. They also carry the risk of causing infertility and depression.
Girls wishing to change gender often opt for testosterone, as it encourages facial hair growth, deepens the voice and makes them more muscular but it carries the risk they could develop cardiovascular disease and cancer. It is more difficult to acquire testosterone online – but doctors fear many girls obtain it on the black market.
Normally, young people considering changing sex are referred to gender identity clinics where they are rigorously assessed, and given hormone drugs under supervision only if they are over 16.
But we found that one company, Quality Health Inc ( QHI), sells oestrogen via its website with no age checks or consultation. It means children can secretly begin the process of changing gender at home and without telling their parents. Do-it-yourself transitioning among adults is also on the rise, largely because of long waiting lists to see specialists.
Sid Dajani, of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, likened the practice to ‘playing Russian roulette’ with their health. He said: ‘In men, taking excess oestrogen can cause sexual dysfunction, infertility, incontinence and type 2 diabetes, which is fatal if unchecked.
‘For women taking male hormones, the risks are that they could develop extreme acne, alopecia and increased body odour. Then there are the mood swings, anxiety and possible depression. Again they have the risk of infertility and there is some evidence emerging that the use of testosterone in women is linked to cardiovascular disease and some cancers.’
Selling prescription-only medication to anyone without a prescription is illegal under the 1968 Medicines Act and carries a maximum jail term of five years.
Hormone drugs posted to customers by QHI – which is under investigation by the UK medicines regulator – usually come in an unmarked box, making it easy for children to deceive parents. One prospective customer wrote on the online forum Reddit: ‘It’s really important that I know the package will not give away its contents.’
With his parents’ permission, a boy aged 15, who is not transitioning, assisted our investigation into the trade. He obtained drugs from QHI without prescription or any questions asked.
Bertie, from Oxted, Surrey, used his debit card to buy an oestrogen brand called Elleste Solo. In a possible attempt to evade British law, the drugs were priced in euros but charged in US dollars. He bought a packet of 28 pills for €37.58 (about £33) and was later sent an indemnity form requiring him to declare he was over 18 and would take the medicine under the supervision of a doctor.
QHI does not sell testosterone, an offence that carries a maximum sentence of 14 years for those who supply it without obtaining a Home Office licence. Those who sell oestrogen unlawfully face much less severe penalties. On its website, QHI gives an address in Regent Street, Central London, but does not i nclude a phone number. The premises turned out to be a ‘virtual office’.
The package sent to Bertie was marked Ripple Global Ltd, a company registered in Ireland but with a shabby office in Bristol. Ripple’s managing director is Alison Specter, 53. Her husband Brett, who describes himself as an entrepreneur, owns half the business.
We tracked down the Specters’ home in Spain – a seventh-floor apartment in the affluent fishing town of El Campello, near Alicante. Neighbours said they were on holiday. The property is a five-minute drive from the post office Ripple