UK raids uncover suspected suppliers of deadly diet drug

[helvella]

For entirely understandable reasons, people desperate for thyroid hormones, especially liothyronine (T3), often trawl lots of body-building/"fitness" sites which offer various substances for sale.

I have always believed that far too many of those involved in these sites, actually selling, have questionable morality and limited ethics. This is partly because I knew someone was ended up in jail after a death from the very substance discussed below - DNP. I certainly wouldn't trust any of them.

If they are willing to supply DNP, what else would they do?

UK raids uncover suspected suppliers of deadly diet drug

Exclusive: US bodybuilding star and an ex-conman are linked to UK sales of the toxic diet drug DNP following searches on premises in Cumbria

Sarah Boseley Health editor

Friday 13 October 2017 18.10 BST

Last modified on Friday 13 October 2017 18.17 BST

A series of raids in northern England has uncovered an operation suspected of selling a deadly fat-burning chemical used by bodybuilders that has killed eight young people in Britain in the last two years.

Around 11 kilos of the chemical 2,4-dinitrophenol, known as DNP, was found last month at premises in Wigton, Cumbria, alongside other legal supplements and equipment that could be used for making tablets.

The premises are believed to be used by a company called Enhanced Athlete Europe, set up by a flamboyant ex-lawyer turned bodybuilding star who calls himself Dr Huge and has his own YouTube channel on which he extols the virtues of “the world’s most dangerous fat loss drug”.

Rest of story here:

theguardian.com/society/201...

[Clutter]

Good grief!

"The substance heats up the body’s metabolism, burning fat, but it can cause drastic overheating. Its victims’ organs literally cook inside the body. Once taken, there is no antidote."

“DNP is basically pesticide coming out of a smoke stack and these folks are ingesting it and losing weight because their body is trying to get rid of it. It is ingested poison."

[helvella in reply to Clutter]

It is horrific stuff. Those with relatively minor industrial exposure can suffer a lot.

It effectively short-circuits our "batteries". That is, it causes the same heat production as occurs in brown adipose tissue when subject to uncoupling proteins - non-shivering thermogenesis.

There are plenty of papers such as this:

Int J Legal Med. 2016 Sep;130(5):1237-41. doi: 10.1007/s00414-016-1378-4. Epub 2016 May 11.

Death within 44 days of 2,4-dinitrophenol intake.

Zack F1, Blaas V1, Goos C2, Rentsch D1, Büttner A3.

Author information

1 Institute of Legal Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany.

2 Clinics for Internal Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany.

3 Institute of Legal Medicine, Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany. [e-mail].

Abstract

We report the case of a 50-year-old obese man (115 kg body mass at 1.77 m height), who started taking 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) for weight reduction 44 days before his death. After 43 days of taking DNP, the man showed signs of intoxication with nausea, vomiting, and attacks of sweating. After admission to a hospital where the man concealed his DNP intake, sinus tachycardia, tachypnea, and general unrest were noted. The patient died 9 h after the onset of those symptoms. Upon autopsy, a yellowing of palms and soles was striking. The initially uncertain cause of death could only be clarified by the forensic toxicological examinations and subsequent police investigations. Finally, the man had a total intake of 12.3 g of DNP in 44 days which is relatively high compared to other lethal DNP intoxications.

KEYWORDS:

2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP); Cause of death; Diet; Intoxication; Tachycardia; Tachypnea

PMID: 27166706

DOI: 10.1007/s00414-016-1378-4

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/271...

[JGBH in reply to helvella]

There is no word to explain the horror of such a callous practice!

[JGBH]

My goodness! How frightening is that.... Yet desperate people will try anything. How dreadful so many desperate and naive young people trying to lose weight while defining muscles are fooled in buying a product that will kill them. Is there no law to stop that sort of activity on body-building/ fitness sites?

[helvella in reply to JGBH]

Plenty of law, so far as I know.

Some enforcement.

When it comes to things like this, the combination of chances of being caught and what happens when caught should be great enough to severely discourage. Obviously, they don't.

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to JGBH]

Trouble is, when the law is enforced, they make no distinction between the really dangerous stuff and things like T3, DHEA and Anovar

[helvella in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

I rather agree.

The promotional aspects are also concerning. It is one thing for someone seeking a specific product to find it - rather another to find videos heavily promoting substances.

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to helvella]

Absolutely.

[TSH110]

How shocking! I think it might be a powerful herbicide for killing broad leaf weeds in lawns - nasty stuff to be treated with considerable caution. Although it does say it is a pesticide in the thread. No I am wrong that is 2,4 Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid.

As for ingesting either of them - horrifying. Some people have no conscience whatsoever.

It then causes problems for obtaining medications we may need for optimum health that are denied us on the NHS.

Blimey it was used in the states from 1933-38 in slimming pills gradually titrated up to individual tolerance (very variable) but discontinued due to causing cataracts 😳