By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The Ministry of Health is alerting the public that it has detected in the marketplace dietary supplements without sanitary registration that are also chemically adulterated.

According to the ministry, products of the brands ViveMax, Duro Sex`s and Mega Gold 36, were found in a macrobiotic in San Jose, where health inspectors confirmed that they do not have the corresponding sanitary registration permit.

Products that do not have a sanitary registration imply a risk to public health because they have not been evaluated to determine that these pills are suitable for use or consumption, said the ministry.

There is no certainty of its true origin or of the conditions under which the products have been manufactured, stored, transported and handled, it added.

According to the ministry, the products are sold as natural sexual energizers and are presented as food supplements. However, tests carried out by the Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Analysis of the Ministry confirmed that these products contained the substance known as sildenafil, said the ministry.

Sildenafil, sold as the brand name Viagra among others, is a medication used to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension.

According to the ministry, the information that the product has on its packaging does not show this ingredient.

However, laboratory results confirmed the substance in the product that can put at risk the health of the consumer, said the ministry.

Sildenafil  is used in medications for the treatment of erectile dysfunction and usually can only be purchased at a pharmacy with a prescription.

This substance may be harmful to patients with uncontrolled hypertension or hypotension, acute myocardial infarction, uncontrolled arrhythmias, history of stroke or other medical conditions, the ministry noted.

Sildenafil can react with other medications and cause various adverse reactions. For these reasons, the use of those illegal products is especially dangerous for people, said the ministry.

Therefore, the use of products such as ViveMax, Duro Sex`s and Mega Gold 36, are especially dangerous for people, said the ministry.

General Health Law No.5395 prohibits the production, trade and use of unregistered, adulterated and counterfeit products. People found guilty of selling illegal products will be sanctioned by the authorities.


In October, a similar alert was issued by the ministry, when was detected the sale of sexual enhancer products for men of the brands Mero Macho, Sex-Max and Toro-Sexx.

Those products also do not have the proper authorization and registration process for sale in the country.

According to the ministry's report, officials from that institution found the products during an inspection in the community of Upala in Alajuela.

In that operation, thousands of products were mostly seized due to the lack of a sanitary registration. Those products were being sold in a macrobiotic store, where they were advertised as sexual energizers with natural ingredients.

The ministry called on the population to report any suspected sale of contraband products to the telephone number (506) 2223-0333

The A.M. Costa Rica urges readers to share this alert with their contacts


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