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| health information | health news

Buying medicines online could harm your health

24 August 2007

Key facts

According to the MHRA, the number of websites offering medicines for sale though the internet has increased rapidly in recent years.
Many websites that sell medicines aren't regulated by UK authorities because they are hosted outside the UK.
If you buy medicines over the internet, there is a risk that they are from unregulated and illegal websites. If they are, there will be no guarantee of safety, quality or effectiveness of the medicines provided.
To protect patient safety, the law is that prescription only medicines must be prescribed by a doctor, and dispensed by a pharmacist. If you do wish to purchase medicines online, speak to your GP about the provider first.

Online Poll Using WebSurveyor

You could be putting your health at risk if you buy medicines online, according to a new report.

Over 3,000 online pharmacies were assessed in a recent survey conducted by MarkMonitor - industry fraud advisers. The findings indicate that some of the medicines sold on these websites may be counterfeit, out-of-date, stolen or diluted.

One tenth of the websites in the survey displayed claims that the medicines don't require a prescription, even though these do need to be prescribed by a doctor. The survey also revealed that the average cost of the medicines sold on these websites was one fifth of the price of those from registered pharmacies, which could indicate that some of the medicines on sale aren't genuine.

Furthermore, the authors of the survey found that half of the websites don't securely store customer data (such as credit card information) which they say could put customers' identity and financial details at risk.

Charlie Abrahams, Vice President of MarkMonitor, commented: "Buying pharmaceuticals online without being careful could endanger both your health and your wallet".

Sara Croakely, a spokesperson for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), advises consumers not to buy medicines over the internet.

"They are licensed as medicines for a reason - professional advice should be sought before taking them to assess the necessity and suitability of the treatment. If consumers buy from the internet, they can expect at the very least to be ripped off and at worst have serious side-effects from the drugs they receive, which have completely bypassed the legitimate licensing process."