Singapore bans Malaysian-made “weight loss coffee” product for containing unsafe substance

PETALING JAYA: A keto coffee product was recently discovered to contain a banned substance by the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

SFA, in a Facebook post, listed the “KetoDiet Coffee” as unsafe to consume as it contains the banned substance Sibutramine.

The “KetoDiet Coffee” is advertised in several e-commerce platforms as a “weight management” product, said to boost one’s energy, metabolism and “breakdown body fat”.

“SFA has worked with various e-commerce platforms to remove product listings and issued warnings to the respective sellers to stop selling the product with immediate effect,” the state food authority said in their post.

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Sibutramine is a controlled substance under the Poisons Act 1952 and listed as a “Group B poison” - banned in Malaysia in 2012 due to its high risks of one experiencing cardiac arrest, according to an article by Dr Normaliza Abdul Manaf published in the Penawaracun Universiti Sains Malaysia website.

The substance is said to accelerate one’s heart rate, causing “sudden blood pressure on blood vessels” along with other side effects including potential stroke and irregular rapid heartbeats with dehydration in consumers resulting in kidney and liver damage.

Other common side effects associated with Sibutramine include dryness in the mouth and throat, insomnia, headaches, constipation, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

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