For the supermarket giant will provide blokes with a little help between the sheets – by selling Viagra.

Tesco – whose slogan is “Every Little Helps” – is the first supermarket in the country to offer the anti-impotence pills without the need for a prescription from their doctor.

It means men with erectile dysfunction will be able to pick up the blue tablets with their groceries – and Tesco for it all night long.

But one thing that won’t be on the rise, is the price. Supermarket bosses intend to sell eight tablets for the cut-price of £52 – that’s down from the usual price of £55 for four.

Tesco’s pharmacy managers have also undergone special training courses to make sure they can handle chaps who have put Viagra on their shopping lust.

It means staff will be able to deal with overconfident men or blokes who are too shy and nervous about asking for the drugs.

A source said: “The pharmacists had three-hour training courses on how to handle the different scenarios dealing with customers. This training wasn’t so much about the medical side but more on how to handle men asking for Viagra.

“Trainers posed as a man coming into the store, confidently sitting down, saying he wasn’t able to perform a sex act and using a slang term to describe it.

“A second scenario saw an older man who was very nervous and couldn’t get his words out.”

Tesco last night confirmed that Viagra would be on sale from September 27 in 300 stores across the UK.

Shona Scott, Tesco commercial manager for pharmacy services, said: “The service is available to men aged between 40 and 65.

“They will have to complete a questionnaire and we will then carry out a blood pressure test, diabetes screen and cholesterol test.”

Erectile dysfunction affects around 2.3 million men in the UK.

Half of all men over 40 will experience it at some point in their lives.

According to the leading doctors, millions of Dollars are wasted by the Health Service on the said tablets. The sad part is that this over-publicized drug fails in more than 50% and is not the appropriate cue in a majority of cases.

Currently, various GP’s prescribe Viagra by default to any male who claims to be suffering from sexual problems; however, the docs recommend that instead of giving the oil, the root cause of the problem should be diagnosed.

Affirming the prevalent situation to the Daily Mail, Dr. Geoffrey Hackett, a consultant urologist at Good Hope Hospital in Birmingham, and former Chairman of the British Society for Sexual Medicine said, “Viagra will only work if there are sufficient levels of testosterone. Everybody thinks that Viagra is the panacea for all sexual problems, it’s not”.

It was brought forth that more than half of the men who consumed Viagra discovered that their problems were not being solved and they experienced no improvement in their condition.

To tackle the situation, the doctors recommend that men should have a blood test so as to adjudge their levels of testosterone. Further, in case the testosterone levels are found to be low, then inexpensive testosterone pills, patches and gels, can be given as the treatment.

The contraversial statement was made by Dr. Julian Gojer, a forensic scientist examining the court case on Wednesday. Adenir De Oliveira committed the crime in February 2009 after stopping his course of anti-depressant drugs. The medication was causing him to suffer erectile dysfunction, which was a problem because he was in a relationship at the time.

The 49 year old threw two 14 year-old boys onto the tracks at an underground station, before trying to do the same to a third teenager. The incident took place during afternoon rush hour. Luckily the teenagers managed to escape serious injury. However, one boy had to have two toes amputated. Mr. De Oliveria was mentally unstable at the time, the defence has argued.

Psychiatrist Dr Gojer suggested that, had Mr. De Oliveria taken Cialis or Viagra, he could have overcome erectile dysfunction and continued to take his anti-depressants. But there was some opposition to this argument in court according to the National Post which reported the story.

Impotence and emotional problems
Erectile dysfunction can cause emotional distress to men and their partners. These problems can be exacerbated if couples do not speak about the problem. Surveys show that many men with erectile dysfunction do not speak about the problem to the people who are closest to them.

The damage that keeping quiet about impotence can do to a relationship can be demonstrated by a case in India recently. A woman divorced her husband on the grounds that he was impotent. He subsequently sued his ex-wife for ‘defaming his manhood’.

Google’s legal eagles are taking action against dodgy pharmacists who have been taking advantage of the Adwords program. Michael Zwibelman, a lawyer at Google HQ, has said that rogue pharmacies were bad for users, legitimate pharmacies and “the entire e-commerce industry”.

The other day we discussed the rise of complaints about counterfeit goods purchased online, and whose responsibility it was. Personally I still think it that consumers are ultimately responsible for their own safety – and that by purchasing controlled medicines outside the normal procedures, they forfeit the protections offered by that process.

That said, there is a difference between selling a drug – and selling an imitation drug made from potentially harmful substances, slightly riskier than a fake Fendi handbag.

Is Google right to police the web? No – but it is right to police those using any of it’s products. A complaint was filed at the U.S District Court in California by Google’s lawyers that alleges one individual and 50 defendants violated the search engine’s contract by not being verified by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy.

Every good blogpost should have a picture, so here’s a still from a UK campaign that ran last year highlighting the dangers of purchasing medicine online.

According to Dr Stephanie Gallard, more men popping the little blue pills will could mask serious health issues behind hidden by it’s stand-up effect.

Dr Gallard, a Medical Director at a Liverpool NHS Hospital, is worried that randy shoppers will become addicted to the sex enhancing drug, which helps put waning sex lives back on track.

The warning comes after Tesco announced plans to beat off stiff competition by selling cheap Viagra to men aged between 40-65 across 300 stores nationwide from next week.

Dr Gallard said: “I am very concerned that if men start buying Viagra from supermarkets, we could see increased numbers of cases of Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes going undetected.

“There is also potential for abuse by customers, who could purchase from multiple stores without clear safeguarding measures.

Bedroom flops will have to pay just £52 for eight of the blue pills, a mark-down price which has become a real bone of contention in medical circles.

But before getting their hands on the budget sex pills, punters will have to complete a questionnaire and have their blood pressure and cholesterol measured.

Although the supermarket giant has stressed the sale will be closely monitored, Dr Gallard added she was worried that overuse could hide the real health issues behind bedroom blushes.

She added: “Erectile dysfunction is often an early warning sign of potential CVD and Diabetes problems, and by simply masking the problem with Viagra, they are just ignoring what could be a potentially fatal issue.

“It is very dangerous for patients on certain medication to take it.

“If their GP has already refused to prescribe them the drug on this basis, there is nothing to stop them going along to Tesco and getting it there instead.

“While a number of pharmacies already sell Viagra, the relatively high cost has always controlled its consumption.

“Now it is being offered at ‘cut price’, I have real fears about the repercussions of this for men across the country.”

The Viagra pills and other commodities were documented by Taryn Simon. The internationally renowned photographer spent 5 days and night last year sleeping on an air mattress at the airport last year, taking photographs of goods coming into the country.

Simon’s mission was to confront American desire, something she believes that counterfeit goods coming through customs are indicative of. She witnessed: “Louis Vuitton bags, Nike sneakers, counterfeit gold, counterfeit Viagra and illegal steroids.” Simons says illegal goods like these threaten American business. Her photographs are brought together in Contraband: an exhibition in New York and Beverly Hills, California. A 500-page book of the same title will be published soon.

Fake Viagra trade

The fake Viagra trade has expanded dramatically over the past 10 years. Pfizer, who manufacture the impotence drug, have even drafted in ex-CIA and FBI personnel to tackle the problem. These officials have gone as far afield as China in their pursuit of counterfeiting rings. Over the course of the past year, counterfeiters have been shut down in Israel, the UK and Taiwan among other countries. Over the past 3 months 180,000 fake Viagra tablets were seized at Heathrow Airport in London. An official there warned that with counterfeit medications you “simply do not know what you may be taking, and that can pose a great danger to your health.”

Experts are proposing a new system where drug packets are accompanied by a code, which can be texted to an official number to see whether they are genuine or not.

Always check that you are buying from a genuine source if you are purchasing Viagra online.

With a statistic like that, it’s no wonder researchers have been frantically trying to develop a pill that could do for women what Viagra has done for men.

But psychologists writing in the Journal of Sexual Medicine say talking about your problems could be far more effective, at least where women are concerned.

The researchers invited a group of women to take a drug treatment that was designed to boost their sex drive. But half of the women received a dummy pill, or placebo, instead. What was interesting was that many of the women taking the placebo were among those whose sex lives had improved.

So could a sugar pill really boost your sex life? Perhaps, say the researchers, at least if you really believed it could. But the fact that the women also had counselling during the trial, where they were encouraged to talk about their problems with a health expert, is the most likely explanation, they claim.

Around one in three of the women taking the placebo said their sex lives had improved. Not a bad result for a sugar pill and a heart-to heart.

Would you take a pill to boost your sex life? Or do women require a different approach altogether? What do you think?

The UK Border Agency warned that the counterfeit erectile dysfunction tablets, which were worth more than £1 million and were destined for the black market, contained “potentially harmful chemicals which are likely to have the desired effect.”

Other goods seized by the airport included 1,300 fake iPhones and 2,500 pieces of counterfeit jewellery worth more than £500,000.

The case comes shortly after a man from Birmingham was sentenced to a 9 month prison sentence, for selling unlicensed impotence drugs. The 61 year old was arrested by police after an investigation by the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority.

A great danger

Head of Operations at the MHRA, Danny Lee-Frost, said that with impotence drugs you “simply do not know what you may be taking and that can pose a great danger to your health.”

Counterfeit medicine is remarkably common. A recent study by Pfizer found that almost a fifth of Europeans polled in 14 countries had obtained medicines through illicit channels.

Aggressive measures

An article in The Economist this month says that recently, drug companies have “persuaded several governments to stiffen regulations against fake drugs and to conduct more aggressive raids.” Firms are seeking out new technologies that would help defeat counterfeiters. One Ghanaian firm has come up with a novel way to improve the situation. They have invented a scheme where a special code is embossed onto packages, which customers find by scratching off a coating. Customers can then send a free text with that code, to find instantly if the package is genuine or fake.

Even as recently as 2007, Viagra controlled most of the impotence treatment market (62%). Cialis was then a close second at 26% while Levitra was almost off the radar at 12%.

Now Eli Lilly, the company that makes Cialis, says its drug is the number one erectile dysfunction drug worldwide. Studies have indicated that Cialis is indeed more popular among couples. In 8 separate published studies, couples were asked to try both Viagra and Cialis. Each drug was used for 2 to 6 months. By the end of the trials, couples said consistently that they preferred Cialis.

Cialis has the advantage over Viagra that it lasts for 35 hours, as opposed to Viagra’s 4 hours. The fact that it lasted longer was seen as the major advantage in the trials.

While Lilly claims that Cialis is now the better selling of the 3 impotence drugs, Viagra producers Pfizer dispute this. Viagra is widely trusted, having been on the market since 1999, and is one of the most recognised brand names worldwide. In one American study it was discovered that 99% of adults were aware of what Viagra did.

With 1 in 2 men becoming impotent in later life, there is a huge market out there for erectile dysfunction treatment. This is likely to lead to a wider range of treatment options in the future. Levitra have recently announced the upcoming release of a new formulation of the drug. Levitra Orodispersable is a form of Levitra that can be placed directly on the tongue, without need for a glass of water.

Researchers said this showed there was clear relation between mind and body concerning sexual arousal and desire to have sex.

Following introduction of drugs such as Viagra and Cialis, they completely transformed the treatment for sexual dysfunction in men in the later parts of 1990, and after that a number of other trials were carried out hoping that the drugs would show similar results in reviving sexual desire in women.

But, the drugs did not show any positive results.

However, in the most recent times, researchers looked at Cialis data and saw that 35% did get positive results with the placebo that was given to them, where not only psychological aspects of sex improved but also, other aspects such as frequent orgasm or lubrication.

Study Author, Andrea Bradford, a post-doctoral fellow at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said that all the things in terms of intercourse, whether it is about psychological or physical aspect, improved.

With time, the sex drive in women fades, but with the placebo, it seemed to have made a good level comeback.

For the supermarket giant will provide blokes with a little help between the sheets – by selling Viagra.

Tesco – whose slogan is “Every Little Helps” – is the first supermarket in the country to offer the anti-impotence pills without the need for a prescription from their doctor.

It means men with erectile dysfunction will be able to pick up the blue tablets with their groceries – and Tesco for it all night long.

But one thing that won’t be on the rise, is the price. Supermarket bosses intend to sell eight tablets for the cut-price of £52 – that’s down from the usual price of £55 for four.

Tesco’s pharmacy managers have also undergone special training courses to make sure they can handle chaps who have put Viagra on their shopping lust.

It means staff will be able to deal with overconfident men or blokes who are too shy and nervous about asking for the drugs.

A source said: “The pharmacists had three-hour training courses on how to handle the different scenarios dealing with customers. This training wasn’t so much about the medical side but more on how to handle men asking for Viagra.

“Trainers posed as a man coming into the store, confidently sitting down, saying he wasn’t able to perform a sex act and using a slang term to describe it.

“A second scenario saw an older man who was very nervous and couldn’t get his words out.”

Tesco last night confirmed that Viagra would be on sale from September 27 in 300 stores across the UK.

Shona Scott, Tesco commercial manager for pharmacy services, said: “The service is available to men aged between 40 and 65.

“They will have to complete a questionnaire and we will then carry out a blood pressure test, diabetes screen and cholesterol test.”

Erectile dysfunction affects around 2.3 million men in the UK.

Half of all men over 40 will experience it at some point in their lives.

An investigation by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) discovered that John Henry Atkinson was illegally promoting the sale of unlicensed erectile dysfunction drugs.

In September 2009 MHRA investigators seized a large amount of erectile dysfunction drugs from his residential address. The seizures consisted of two boxes containing an estimated 7,000 Kamagra tablets, a box containing 2,000 Savitra tablets, a carrier bag of 61 Apcalis 20mg oral jelly sachets and ten boxes containing Kamagra 100mg oral jelly sachets. The total estimated value of the drugs seized was £53,000.

Atkinson pleaded guilty on 26 July 2010 to the sale of Kamagra and Apcalis which are unlicensed medicines.

Recorder Rochford whilst sentencing Atkinson said “you were preying on the weaknesses of people with difficulties” and “you acted purely out of greed without any regard to the danger this would involve.”

MHRA Head of Operations Danny Lee-Frost said “This is a serious example of a man who has no regard for others. These medicines Atkinson was promoting are unlicensed medicines. As a result you simply don’t know what you may be taking and that can pose a great danger to your health.”

Notes

1. If an individual is convicted of offences under the Medicines Act 1968, they can be sentenced to a maximum of two years imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine. Where appropriate the MHRA will use the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to determine whether or not benefits were accrued through criminal activity and will recoup illicit earnings if the individual is found guilty. In cases involving counterfeit medicines, the MHRA will use the Fraud Act or Trade Marks Act which both carry a maximum of 10 years imprisonment.

2. Anyone who has concerns about misleading advertising or promotional offers of medicines should contact the MHRA Advertising Standards Unit, 14-112, Market Towers, Vauxhall, London SW8 5NQ or phone 020 7084 2000. Alternatively, contact the pharmaceutical self-regulatory bodies, the Proprietary Association of Great Britain (PAGB) for advertising for over the counter medicines, or the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) for advertisements to health professionals for prescription medicines.

3. The advertising of medicines is controlled by a combination of statutory measures (with both criminal and civil sanctions) enforced by the MHRA, and self-regulation through Codes of Practice for the pharmaceutical industry, administered by trade associations.

4. The ‘Blue Guide on Advertising and Promotion of Medicines in the UK’ explains the regulations and provides clarification on the Agency’s interpretation of them and how advertising of medicines is regulated.