What is the “Barbie drug”?
“Barbie Drug” is the nickname for a hormone that turns skin tan in 30 days. Behind the name of Barbie drug hides in fact Melanotan. This synthetic hormone, developed in the United States in the 1980s, is the synthetic version of natural hormones, MSH (Melanocyte Stimulating Hormone) which stimulate melanocytes, the cells responsible for skin pigmentation.
Melanotan is therefore an interesting molecule for scientists who have studied it to treat diseases related to sensitivity to light or UV.
The hormone that interests us is in fact another version of Melanotan, not recognized by the medical community: Melanotan II. More and more women are using it because it has the “power” to speed up tanning, reduce appetite and boost libido. A “miracle cocktail” which is not without risks …
Barbie Drug: Why are we talking about it in Belgium?
Banned in Europe but popular with many tanning addicts, the Barbie drug is found at the heart of a vast traffic. Especially in Belgium. 500 bottles of this product were recently discovered at a dealer in West Flanders.
This case makes the headlines of the Belgian press which warns against the dangers of this hormone. A user of Melanotan, bought on the Internet, had to be hospitalized with serious skin problems. Last year, still in Belgium, a woman developed melanoma, a form of skin cancer, after consuming it, without the cause and effect link being established.
Barbie Drug: why is it dangerous for your health?
There are many suspicions about Melanotan II, in the absence of scientific study confirming its harmlessness for humans. In Belgium and in other countries like the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, tend to show that the taking of Barbie Drug exposes to big risks for health. “When using Melanotan, we have already noticed appearances or changes of moles. In people who were already sunbeds, we have also seen melanomas appear ”, observes a Belgian dermatologist Dr Del Marmol, quoted by sudpress.be.
Melanotan would increase the risk of skin cancer. A hypothesis supported by many health authorities such as the Food and Drug Administration, the American drug agency.
In addition to this risk of skin cancer, Melanotan II could produce certain side effects such as depression, loss of appetite, nausea,arterial hypertension, redness and panic attacks.
Last point raised by the Belgian health authorities, some bottles of Barbie Drug would also contain potentially lethal substances, such as insulin. In the case ofinsulin, this represents a real danger for people without diabetes. “The product is offered in different forms, under different names, observes Ann Eeckhout of the Belgian Federal Medicines Agency. There are already a large number of different vials and presentations on the market. And in one of these lots, we discovered insulin. ”
And if we give this hormone with insulin to a non-diabetic, what is the risk? : “He will quickly fall into a coma, because we block the production and normal sugar metabolism”, warns the doctor.
Barbie Drug: is it over the counter?
The sale of the Barbie drug is illegal in Australia, the United States and Europe because of all of these potential risks. Problem, we can get it easily on the Internet.
In Australia, for example, there are vials of Barbie drug, available at an average price of 30 or 40 dollars per bottle, on online sales sites. Proof of this new business, Pure peptides, an online distributor of Barbie drug has boasted of having fulfilled 10,000 orders last year.
The health authorities are worried about this craze and are increasing the number of warnings for potential buyers. “There is no evidence that the product is safe and effective and which justifies its being authorized,” recalls the FDA.
While waiting for proof of its harmlessness, any risk is avoided by using a good self-tanner.
>> To read also: Self-tanner: how to make yourself a custom tan
