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Singapore Tests 45 Chinese-Made Diet Products

Fri Jun 7, 9:53 AM ET

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore health authorities are carrying out tests on

Chinese-made diet products sold in the country after one brand was linked to

at least a dozen sick women and one death.

The Health Sciences Authority began legal action Tuesday against the

importers of Slim 10 diet pills under the Poisons Act, saying the herbal

product was adulterated after being cleared for sale.

Last week, the authority began to sample 45 Chinese slimming products

available in the city state, mostly traditional herbal remedies known as

Chinese proprietary medicines (CPMs).

" The products are currently undergoing comprehensive testing for

adulteration with western synthetic chemicals, " it said in a written reply

to Reuters late Thursday. " These products are in the form of capsules,

tablets and liquids and are mostly from China. "

Some 9,000 Chinese proprietary medicines are sold in Singapore.

The authority did not say when it expected to complete the tests.

Singapore has been investigating potential links between the Slim 10 product

and doctors reports of illnesses in women who used it.

Local television celebrity de Cruz had a life-saving liver transplant

and a 43-year-old woman died from liver failure.

TV host De Cruz declined to discuss whether she took diet pills but her

doctors said they suspected Slim 10 had caused her condition. The family of

the dead woman, Selvarani Raja, told local media she had taken the pills for

a few months. At least a dozen other women have reported health problems.

The health authority has declined to say whether there is a conclusive link

between Slim 10 and the cases of the ill women while investigations are

underway.

Singapore authorities said Slim 10 met safety standards when it was launched

in Singapore in December. But they yanked the pills from shop shelves in

April after tests showed the product contained undeclared ingredients.

Singapore authorities say the Slim 10 pills are manufactured by

Guangdong-based company, Yue Zhi Tang Health Manufacturing. The company

could not be reached for comment.