to protect British people from the dangers of black market medications

The scale of the business in fake erectile dysfunction medication is mind boggling. It is estimated that more fake erectile dysfunction medication is sold worldwide than the real thing. In some countries like the United Kingdom where regulations are on the whole followed with regard to prescription medication real versions of Viagra, Cialis and Levitra sell more than the fakes however in other places like in Africa counterfeit medication is everywhere and causes thousands of deaths every year.

To give you an idea of the numbers involved regarding fake impotence medication in the UK, 6 million fake Viagra style tablets were picked up in Heathrow Airport alone in 2010. It is estimated that around £13million of counterfeit impotence medications were impounded by customs officials in 2010.

The figure released by the UK Border Agency is only part of the overall UK imports of fake erectile dysfunction medication and despite the best efforts of the MHRA to warn about the dangers of these medicines gullible individuals keep on importing them. The MHRA has warned that these fake Viagra tablets are usually made in substandard and dirty conditions in India and China and often contain dangerous compounds which usually don't have any effect on erectile function.

Mr. Brodie Clark who is the head of border enforcement at the UKBA explained that the import of these fake and unlicensed impotence medications was taken as seriously as the illegal importation of guns and other weapons. He said that the UKBA wanted to protect British people from the dangers of black market medications. He also pointed out that the only motivation for smugglers of counterfeit medication was money and that it was often used to finance more serious organized crime.

The drug companies Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Bayer which make genuine Viagra, Cialis and Levitra are often contacted to verify that the smuggled medications are fakes and have themselves invested millions of pounds in identifying manufacturers and importers of the fake drugs.