5pc of medicine in Malaysia are fake

Fake medicines would do nothing to relieve a patient’s condition. – Reuters pic

KUALA LUMPUR, 13 Feb – Malaysia has a fake medicine prevalence of roughly three to five per cent of all medicine in the country’s circulation, according to an article by Emerging Markets Health Network (EMHN).

It said the rate was relatively low compared with certain Asean neighbours, such as Indonesia and the Philippines.

However, there are concerns about the quality and integrity of the many traditional medicine that is widely sold in Malaysia because some have been found to actually contain poison, it said.

“A study published in 2005 found that 14 per cent of tested Smilax Luzonensis (more commonly known as  Akarbanar) contained 0.51-1.23ppm mercury, thereby contravening quality requirements for traditional medicine in Malaysia,” said the article.

The article Fake Medicines in Asia was written by EMHN executive director Philip Stevens and Fellow at the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) Malaysia Dr Helmy Haja Mydin.

The article also stated that the fake medicines were not only a growing menace in the poorer Asian countries, but they are penetrating the supply chain even in relatively tightly regulated markets such as Malaysia.

It said fake medicines fall into two main categories - drugs with intentionally falsified ingredients, and those whose contents are unintentionally substandard due to poor manufacturing practices.

Fake medicines would do nothing to relieve a patient’s condition but instead, fake medicine containing toxins such as arsenic or anti-freeze would be harmful to health and may cause death.

“Other examples of toxic contaminants found in fake medicines include heavy metals such as lead or arsenic, rat poison, road paint, anti-freeze and floor wax,” it said. – Bernama