Ukmedix has received some almost unbelievable statistics regarding the sale and manufacture of fake drugs recently that show that nearly 50% of all medicines that are found in 3rd world countries are in fact not made by the correct manufacturer but are fake copies. The figures that were complied by the World Health Organisation show that the problem shows no sign of abating and that it is likely to get worse over the next 5 years.

The biggest culprit for the manufacturing of these drugs is China where the fake drugs are made in remote factories that are often disguised as other legitimate businesses and in any cases the rural police would be too afraid to arrest the owners and shut them down for fear of reprisals. According to the Pharmaceutical Security Institute that is funded by some of the world’s biggest legitimate drug companies to counter the problem China’s fake drug industry is huge and worth billions of dollars yearly.

This huge industry is a serious threat to the safety of millions of people especially in poorer countries that are often lured into buying these drugs due to their cheap price. The fake drug industry also relies on making copies of erectile dysfunction drugs like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra that are sold online in richer countries like America and in Europe. Some of the erectile dysfunction drugs are in fact perfect copies but many of them are not. In testing of a batch of fake Cialis it was found that some of the pills contained the active ingredient taladafil but in tiny quantities and others had dangerously high levels of the drug.

The fake drug industry has invested million of pounds in getting the labeling of the fake drugs to be identical to the labeling of the real erectile dysfunction drugs, meaning that even Eli Lilly who make Cialis have a problem in telling the difference between the two. The actual pills look identical too meaning that chemical analysis is needed before the fake Cialis can be determined to be counterfeit.

Eli Lilly have a whole division devoted to finding people who make the fake Cialis and trying to get the authorities especially in China to crack down on them. The head of the global anti-counterfeiting strategy said that he is amazed at the length that the criminals will go to get the exact replicas of Cialis and that throughout China physically identical Cialis and packaging is easily found. What is nit identical is the contents of the drugs with one recent case showing that the drugs were made from floor wax, yellow paint and boric acid!

Many of the illegal online websites that look like they are based in the UK are in fact run from China and when you order a parcel is sent from some remote Chinese village to your UK address. Always check that there is a UK address to the company (a Union Jack for a logo means nothing) and never buy a drug online without a prescription from a UK pharmacy.