Unauthorized eye washes and drops pose serious health risks, seized from a Japanese store in Mississauga
Published May 15, 2023 at 8:32 am
Unauthorized eye washes and eye drops were seized from a Japanese store in Mississauga as they pose serious health risks.
Kobayashi eye washes and Sante FX eye drops were seized from “Kiokii and…” store at 719 Central Parkway West, Suite 211 in Mississauga, according to a press release from Health Canada.
They were also removed from the store website.
Health Canada warns the public these products are labelled to contain prescription drug ingredients that may pose serious health risks.
“Selling unauthorized health products in Canada is illegal,” Health Canada states. “Unauthorized health products have not been approved by Health Canada, which means that they have not been assessed for safety, efficacy and quality and may pose a range of serious health risks.”
They could contain high-risk ingredients, such as prescription drugs, additives or contaminants that may or may not be listed on the label. These ingredients could interact with other medications and foods.
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In addition, these products may not actually contain the active ingredients that consumers would expect them to contain to help maintain and improve their health.
Prescription drugs should only be used under the advice and supervision of a healthcare professional because they are used to treat specific conditions and may cause serious side effects.
Health Canada warns of seven Kobayashi products — Kobayashi 9 Vitamins (Black), Kobayashi AL Pollen Allergies (Green), Kobayashi Cool (Light Blue), Kobayashi Hyaluronic Acid (Orange), Kobayashi Non-Coolin (Turquoise/Light Blue), Kobayashi Premium Vitamin (Pink), and Kobayashi Repair (Blue).
According to the label these products contain aminocaproic acid, a prescription drug ingredient used to decrease bleeding in various clinical situations. Exposure to aminocaproic acid in the eye may affect the eye itself, and the acid may be absorbed through the tear ducts into the blood.
Side effects may include watery eyes, vision changes, headache, dizziness, nausea, muscle weakness and skin rash.
The Sante FX Neo products contain aminocaproic acid and neostigmine methylsulfate, according to the label. In the past, drugs similar to neostigmine were used to treat glaucoma.
But these medications are no longer widely used because of the significant number of potential eye-related side effects, including blurred distance vision, frontal headaches, twitching lids, red eyes, cataracts, allergic reactions, iris cysts, retinal detachment and the potential for causing a specific type of glaucoma attack.
In addition, absorption into the nose via the tear duct may cause serious cardiac and respiratory side effects.
- Do not use these products. Return the product to your local pharmacy for proper disposal.
- Consult a healthcare professional if you have used any of these products and have health concerns.
- Buy your prescription drugs only from licensed pharmacies.
- Buy only authorized health products. Read product labels to verify that health products have been authorized for sale by Health Canada. Authorized health products have an eight-digit Drug Identification Number (DIN), Natural Product Number (NPN) or Homeopathic Drug Number (DIN-HM). You can also check whether products have been authorized for sale by searching Health Canada’s Drug Product Database and Licensed Natural Health Product Database.
- Report any health product-related side effects or complaints to Health Canada.