58 Overseas Direct Purchase Foods Including 'Harmful Ingredient Containing' Muscle Supplements Blocked from Import

This article is unrelated to specific content. [Source=Asia Economy DB]

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 3rd that it has blocked the import of 58 overseas direct purchase food products claiming effects such as weight loss, muscle supplementation, and breast enlargement, as these products contained ingredients and components banned from import into the country.

From April 5 to July 13, the Ministry selected and tested 100 overseas direct purchase food products sold on domestic and international online shopping malls suspected of containing harmful substances. The results showed that banned ingredients and components were found in 15 products claiming weight loss effects, 18 products claiming muscle enhancement effects, and 25 products claiming breast enlargement effects.

Among the detected weight loss products, the ingredient 'L-Dopa,' used for Parkinson's syndrome, was found, along with 'Phenylethylamine,' similar to the psychotropic drug amphetamine, and 'Sennoside,' a medicinal ingredient used for constipation treatment that has no effect on breaking down body fat.

In the muscle enhancement products, professional medicines such as 'anabolic steroids' were contained. These ingredients can cause serious side effects if misused or abused, including ▲hair loss, infertility, and gynecomastia in men ▲masculinization and menstrual irregularities in women ▲hypothyroidism and growth retardation in adolescents.

Additionally, some muscle enhancement products contained 'selective androgen receptor modulators,' which may cause side effects such as heart attacks, strokes, and liver damage, so special caution is advised, according to the Ministry.

In the breast enlargement products, ingredients such as 'citrulline,' a medicinal component used as an adjunct treatment for fatigue and lethargy symptoms, were confirmed to be present.

A Ministry official warned, "Consuming foods containing medicinal ingredients arbitrarily may cause side effects, and the purification of impurities or quality control of medicinal ingredients has not been verified," urging caution.

Furthermore, consumers were strongly advised to purchase products that have undergone formal import inspection procedures when buying foods through overseas direct purchase.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.