NY Warning Issued After Aphrodisiac Kills Man
The FDA-banned substance, made from toad venom, is still widely available.
May 23, 2008— -- NEW YORK (AP) - Health officials are warning New Yorkers to stayaway from an illegal aphrodisiac made from toad venom after theproduct apparently killed a man.
The alert went out Friday after New York City's poison controlcenter received a report from an area hospital that a 35-year-oldman had died earlier this month after ingesting a small chunk ofthe hard, brown substance.
The product is sold at sex shops and neighborhood stores undernames including Piedra, Love Stone, Jamaican Stone, Black Stone andChinese Rock. It is banned by the Food and Drug Administration, butshipments from overseas suppliers still occasionally slip pastcustoms.
Buyers may have no idea they are dealing with anything illegalor dangerous. The various types of "stone" are often soldpackaged in plastic, with a barcode, a price tag andofficial-looking instructions for use.
City health officials said the 35-year-old victim developed anabnormal heart rhythm after eating some "Piedra" he purchased ata neighborhood store.
He was admitted to the hospital complaining of chest andabdominal pain. Doctors recognized the problem and treated him fortwo days but couldn't save his life. His name was not released.
Health officials say the culprit was a hardened resin, made atleast partly from venom collected from toads of the Bufo genus,containing chemicals known as bufadienolides that can disrupt heartrhythms. The aphrodisiac was supposed to have been applied to theskin, not eaten, but authorities said even that use can be harmful.
"There is no definitely safe way to use it," said Dr. RobertHoffman, director of the city's poison control center. "Don't buyit. Don't sell it. If you have it, don't use it. Throw it out."
The same type of product killed at least four New Yorkers in theearly 1990s. A 17-year-old boy also fell seriously ill, butsurvived following hours of aggressive treatment.
Following that outbreak, city investigators went looking for thepoison and found it was being sold sporadically in grocery stores,smoke shops and from street vendors.
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