Shafaq News- Erbil

Authorities in the Kurdistan Region (KRI) ordered three dietary supplements marketed for weight loss withdrawn from sale on Sunday after laboratory tests detected undeclared sibutramine, a drug linked to serious cardiovascular risks.

The Kurdistan Region's pharmaceutical quality control directorate identified the products as ROMA Coffee, Milano Coffee and Ginseng Tea, saying tests had found substantial amounts of sibutramine that neither the manufacturer nor the importer had disclosed in product documentation.

In a statement, the directorate said the withdrawal was intended to protect public health, citing the drug's risks to the heart and circulatory system.

It urged consumers to stop buying or using the products and instructed pharmacies and pharmaceutical warehouses to immediately halt their sale and purchase, warning that violators would face legal penalties.

The statement did not specify the quantities being withdrawn or any measures taken against the manufacturer and importer.

Sibutramine, previously used to treat obesity, was withdrawn from the US market in 2010 after clinical evidence linked it to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. The European Medicines Agency also recommended suspending marketing authorizations for medicines containing the drug that year after concluding that their risks outweighed their benefits.

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