Deadly goods on sale: How fake products damage organs, destroy lives

* Everyday purchases now turn to health dangers * Patients wind up paying two times for treatment– Adefunke Adeniyi * Counterfeit drugs damage kidneys, liver– Amarachukwu Enahoro * Adulterated drugs can trigger collapse of health sector– Pharmacists alert

By Chioma Obinna

It is an understatement to state that Nigeria is presently fighting a health crisis. Practically every item, drug, food or beverage is being counterfeited in the nation and the repercussion is deadly. Young children are no longer safe since counterfeit infant foods are all over. Moms and dads now require to work out care in the option of biscuits to offer to their kids as some biscuits have actually been found to include harmful.

A tablet swallowed to treat malaria might wind up harming the kidneys or liver while a bottle of beverage purchased to satiate thirst might expose the customer to unsafe compounds. Cooking oil packaged under a relied on brand name might include active ingredients far eliminated from what the label assures. For countless Nigerians, the growing threat of phony and low quality items has actually turned daily purchases into a possibly fatal gamble, with effects varying from stopped working treatment and organ damage to special needs and death.

The scale of the danger is highlighted by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), which reported ruining risky, falsified and non-compliant controlled items worth 22.73 billion in between January and August 2026. Beyond the billions of naira in taken and ruined items lies a more troubling truth: the human expense of a trade that preys on customers, weakens medical treatment, drains pipes household resources and puts lives at danger.

Health specialists have actually for that reason raised the alarm that damaging compounds in fake medications, beverages and foodstuff can harm crucial organs. The concern now is no longer simply just how much Nigeria is losing to phony items, however the number of lives are being jeopardized.

When the medication stops working

The risk is especially major when fake or low quality medications are utilized to deal with typical diseases such as malaria. A client experiencing fever and body pains might purchase an antimalarial, take it as directed and anticipate to recuperate. A medication consisting of inadequate active components, no efficient active ingredient or an improper compound might stop working to deal with the health problem, permitting the client’s condition to aggravate.

Dr Amarachukwu Enahoro, a medical physician and public health doctor at Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), stated fake medications might beat the extremely function for which they were acquired. “The repercussion for that individual may be that the primary function for which this medication was put, which is to deal with malaria, will not be accomplished,” she stated. “The 2nd ramification is that it can now trigger damage. Depending upon what they utilized to prepare the phony medication, it can now trigger damage to the kidneys and the liver.”

The results depend upon the compounds included, the amount taken in and the individual’s health. While some injuries might be reversible with timely treatment, serious damage can lead to long lasting loss of organ function, impairment and a decreased lifestyle.

“The liver can be impacted. The kidneys can be impacted. And these have the prospective to trigger impairment, loss of function, when these organs are harmed. It impacts the lifestyle of individuals,” Enahoro stated.

A significant NAFDAC operation in Lagos in February 2026 showed the prospective scale of the danger. The company supposedly took more than 10 million dosages of fake malaria medications and cosmetic items valued at roughly 3billion throughout a raid at Trade Fair Market. The reported haul consisted of antimalarials, prescription antibiotics and other medications. 8 truckloads of items were eliminated, while 4 suspects were apprehended.

Another caution was available in April 2025, when NAFDAC signaled Nigerians to fake Aflotin 20/120 antimalarial tablets distributing under the name of an authentic medication. The alert followed the recognition of disparities in the fake item’s product packaging and batch details.

For clients who depend upon prompt treatment, the threat is clear: a medication might bring a familiar name without supplying the quality, security or efficiency they anticipate.

The threat beyond the medication cabinet

Fake and adulterated foodstuff can likewise expose customers to damaging compounds, often impacting a number of individuals who take in the very same item. Reports of deaths and hospitalisations following the intake of in your area made alcoholic and organic beverages in Ondo State have actually raised issues about the security of drinks taken in at celebrations. Reports have actually likewise connected believed infected juices in Kano State to serious health problem, consisting of kidney-related issues. These events highlight the possible repercussions when the contents and security of items can not be ensured.

In January 2026, NAFDAC likewise reported an operation including phony Goya Extra Virgin Olive Oil in Lagos. At Oke-Arin Market, Idumota, the company apparently discovered a supposed operation in which palm oil was blended with colouring representatives and repackaged as Goya olive oil. The case showed how a relied on brand might be made use of to offer an item whose structure varied from what customers anticipated. For purchasers, the deceptiveness might be tough to find. Familiar product packaging can motivate self-confidence even when the contents have actually not been confirmed.

Speaking with Saturday Vanguard, Dr Ope Osunyomi, a public health specialist, Financial Secretary of the Medical Guild and medical officer of health with the Lagos State Government, cautioned that damaging compounds in phony items might harm crucial organs.

“If those things that they are taking in include things that can impact those significant organs of the body, it can really cause failure of those organs,” he stated. The impacts depend upon the item’s real structure, the quantity taken in and the person’s health. Kids, pregnant ladies, older individuals and those dealing with persistent diseases might be especially susceptible to specific damaging direct exposures.

The trouble is that customers might not instantly acknowledge the connection in between an item and their signs. Some counterfeit items look persuading enough to motivate self-confidence, while copied labels and registration numbers can make them hard to recognize through visual evaluation alone.

Paying two times for treatment

For numerous Nigerians, rate plays a definitive function in what they purchase. As family spending plans tighten up, less expensive medications and other items can appear to use much-needed relief. A low rate might hide a much greater ultimate expense.

In a chat with Saturday Vanguard, Dr Adefunke Ronnie Adeniyi, a public health doctor at LUTH, stated customers who purchased phony or low quality items might wind up investing more when the anticipated treatment stopped working. “The issue is that the less expensive item might not really conserve them cash in the long run,” she stated. “If it is phony or second-rate and the disease does not enhance, they might wind up investing more on another round of treatment, examinations or healthcare facility admission.”

A client might require another assessment, extra medication or healthcare facility admission. If problems establish, the expenses can increase substantially.

There is likewise the loss of earnings when disease avoids individuals from working. Households might need to divert cash implied for food, school charges or other needs towards treatment, while family members might lose working hours looking after ill member of the family.

Adeniyi stated the issue needs to not be decreased to blaming customers for acquiring less expensive items. Hardship and the increasing expense of living can press individuals towards more economical alternatives, especially where budget friendly, quality medications are challenging to gain access to.

She likewise indicated the intricacy of the supply chain. Fake items can get in through makers, importers, wholesalers, markets, drug stores and online sellers, making efficient tracking challenging. Some are packaged to look like real items so carefully that customers can not dependably identify them by look. Even a NAFDAC registration number is not definitive evidence of credibility due to the fact that counterfeiters can copy information from genuine items.

Customers ought to purchase medications from credible, certified sources, examine item information and utilize readily available authentication services. They must look out to damaged seals, transformed labels and suspicious product packaging, while bearing in mind that visual assessment alone can not ensure security.

Anybody who believes an item is falsified or polluted must report it to the proper regulator. Those who end up being seriously ill after taking medication or taking in an item ought to look for timely medical attention and, where possible, keep the product packaging and batch information to support examination.

The effects likewise extend beyond private homes. Poor-quality antimicrobial medications can add to treatment failure, while insufficient direct exposure to reliable treatment can assist resistant bacteria endure and spread out. Antimicrobial resistance makes infections more difficult to deal with, possibly causing longer health problems, more complex care and higher pressure on health centers.

According to Dr Adewale Oladipo, Medical Practitioner and Public Health Physician, “the increasing flow of phony and counterfeit medications in Nigeria is a severe public health hazard that ought to not be dealt with gently. The effects surpass the monetary losses suffered by unwary customers; they straight threaten human lives. When individuals take counterfeit medications, they expose themselves to major health issues since such items might include little or no active pharmaceutical active ingredients, inaccurate does or hazardous compounds. In many cases, clients might think they are getting treatment when, in truth, the drugs are not doing anything to resolve their medical conditions.

“One of the most harmful effects is treatment failure. A client suffering from malaria, typhoid, high blood pressure, diabetes or a transmittable illness might experience aggravating signs since the medication being administered is either inefficient or consists of the incorrect active ingredients. This can result in issues, extended health problem, organ damage and, in serious cases, death.

“Another significant issue is antimicrobial resistance, especially with phony prescription antibiotics. When medications include insufficient amounts of active components, they might stop working to get rid of disease-causing organisms, permitting them to establish resistance. This makes infections significantly tough and costly to deal with and positions a major difficulty to the health care system. The circumstance is especially unsafe for kids, pregnant ladies, senior individuals and people coping with persistent diseases, who might suffer serious repercussions from direct exposure to substandard or falsified medications.

“Nigerians need to comprehend that taking medications is not just about swallowing tablets or administering injections; it has to do with guaranteeing that the items are real, safe and suitable for the condition being dealt with. Individuals need to prevent self-medication, purchase medications from credible and certified outlets, and look for medical recommendations whenever they experience uncommon responses or think that a medication is inefficient.

NAFDAC and other pertinent authorities should likewise magnify public knowledge, security and enforcement to guarantee that those associated with the production and circulation of fake medications are determined and prosecuted. Safeguarding the quality of medications readily available to people is essential to safeguarding public health.

From seizures to avoidance

The ongoing flow of phony and subpar items requires more than raids and damage workouts. It needs a more powerful system for spotting risky items, tracing their sources and avoiding them from reaching customers.

Osunyomi required more powerful regulative organizations, especially NAFDAC and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, along with more reliable enforcement. “There’s a lot that requires to be done to assist to enhance these organizations, so that they can assist to find where a few of these things are being done or being produced and being brought into the marketplace area,” he stated.

Adeniyi required more reliable assessments, lab screening, security and tracking of circulation networks, consisting of online sales. Producers and suppliers need to preserve robust quality-control systems, while health care specialists ought to inform clients and report presumed falsified medications or uncommon treatment failures.

Market associations can assist dissuade the sale of suspicious items, while police ought to examine those associated with massive production and circulation.

Public education is similarly crucial. Customers require available info on how to acquire medications securely, identify indication and report thought items. Federal government should likewise enhance access to inexpensive, quality medications so that expense does not press individuals towards hazardous options.

Osunyomi worried that safeguarding neighborhoods can not be delegated regulators alone. “We require to take ownership of our neighborhood,” he stated. She advised neighborhood leaders, spiritual organisations, market associations and private people to decline the sale of hazardous items and report suspicious activities.

The stakes are high. Beyond the worth of products took or ruined are the expenses borne by households: cash invested in repetitive treatment, incomes lost to health problem, pressure on healthcare facilities and the possibility of long-term injury. For Nigerians, purchasing medication or food ought to not end up being a gamble with their health. A tablet needs to use a real opportunity of healing; a bottle of beverage need to not bring covert risks; and a familiar brand name ought to suggest what customers have every factor to anticipate.

The genuine step of success in the battle versus phony items will not be the worth of items ruined, however how successfully Nigeria avoids risky items from reaching customers.

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