National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has raised the alarm over the increasing consumption of aphrodisiacs by Nigerians warning that the use of performance enhancement drugs to impress sexual partners could lead to stroke or sudden death.
Its Director General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, in a statement, said most sex enhancement drugs sold in the country were the combination of local and herbal mixtures that were not registered with NAFDAC and were inimical to health.
She said the unbridled use of aphrodisiacs had a lot of implications in the entire body system, especially its effect on blood pressure. She said many men have died using performance enhancing drugs.
“When there is a disproportionate flow of blood to a particular part of the body that lasts longer than normal, they tend to disrupt the normal flow of the circulatory system. When these things are used, especially with some herbal medicines that don’t have dosage and professional prescription, it could lead to internal organ damage, hurt the liver and kidneys thereby leading to untimely death.
“In people with certain health risks, notably hypertension or heart disease, there is more of anxiety that the drug could stimulate into the system, and with anxiety that could lead to changes in the physiology of the body which could lead to stroke or sudden stoppage of the heart,” she said.
She described as false, the claim by producers of local sex enhancement drugs that they had no side effects on users, vowing that the agency would go after the promoters of such drugs until they were arrested for violating the regulations bordering on the manufacture and sale of drugs.
Adeyeye said intimacy was a primary requirement in life and that most people have the need for intimacy for a healthy sexual life which determines their overall wellbeing.
“Nevertheless, if there are physical or psychological problems to a person’s sexual life, it can hamper their self-confidence. Many people have been caught in the web of such circumstances leading them to seek a way out of the wood. In recent times, the use of aphrodisiacs has become the range. Many people are ignorant of the possible damage that misuse of aphrodisiacs or use of unregistered drugs could cause. We must know that not all cases of sudden death are caused by witches and wizards in the village. In most cases, they are caused by what we eat or drink carelessly.”
-Abiodun Ishola