By Chioma Obinna
Following soaring costs of healthcare and drug shortages in the country, millions of Nigerians are compelled to seek alternative sources of purchasing drugs that are relatively cheaper and affordable.
Their desperation to find cure for their ailments at affordable costs has however made many fall victims of scammers on the social media who promise them a permanent solution to the problems but they end up with worse situations.
Nigerians desperate for affordable healthcare are now gambling with their lives as social media has turned into an unregulated pharmacy. Patients are going blind, suffering kidney failures, and even dying after taking counterfeit or unprescribed medicines sold online. Unfortunately, this new silent epidemic is unfolding—not in hospital wards, but through phone screens and social media feeds. Medical complications are no longer far; they’re delivered to the doorstep.
From Instagram stories to WhatsApp messages and Facebook broadcasts, drugs are being marketed, sold, and delivered across Nigeria with just a few clicks; no prescription, no diagnosis, and no medical supervision. Medications for ailments such as red eyes, ulcers, diabetes, high blood pressure, infertility, and prostate issues are readily available online, often promoted as quick fixes. In a country that parades an unenviable life expectancy between 54 and 64 years, which placed it as the world’s shortest in 2025, what started as a convenience has quietly metamorphosed into a national health hazard.
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Today, with a single tap, users are exposed to a flood of healthcare product advertisements: from herbal detox teas and anti-hypertensives to cancer remedies, weight loss pills, arthritis cures, and ulcer treatments. These products are aggressively promoted across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, and other digital platforms. Many rely on unverifiable testimonials and pseudo-scientific claims to gain traction, often targeting desperate or uninformed consumers.
But public health experts and regulatory authorities are sounding the alarm. They warned that without immediate intervention, this unregulated digital drug market could fuel a full-scale health crisis that Nigeria’s already fragile healthcare system may not be equipped to handle.
According to them, these medicines sold online are contributing to a surge in preventable complications such as kidney and liver failure, sudden blindness, strokes, and even deaths.
But in most cases, the damage is done quietly unseen until it becomes irreversible.
Findings by Saturday Vanguard show that the sale of unregulated healthcare products online is no longer just a growing trend but also a ticking public health time bomb. Pharmacists, doctors, and regulators are raising alarm bells, but enforcement remains weak in the face of a fast-growing digital drug bazaar.
The current development, according to experts, has escalated the prevalent practice of self-medication in Nigeria and the world at large. And this poses significant health risks and has far-reaching implications for public health. While identifying the primary drivers of self-medication in Nigeria as limited access to healthcare, inadequate healthcare services, which have prompted individuals to rely on online medications or home remedies, doctors say, it can lead to higher healthcare costs in the long run. They said complications arising from self-treatment can necessitate more extensive medical interventions.
Victims of online drug purchase
Amaka
When Amaka, a 23-year-old student, noticed her eyes turning red and watery, she did what many of her peers now do. She opened Instagram, searched for “best eye drops for red eyes,” and found a vendor who promised instant whitening, no prescription needed. A bottle was delivered to her hostel door the same evening. At first, the drops worked like magic as her eyes cleared almost instantly. But within two weeks, her vision became blurred, and she began shielding her eyes from light. At a Lagos eye clinic, doctors discovered she had been using a potent steroid drop that had dangerously raised her eye pressure. “One more month and her sight could have been permanently gone,” her ophthalmologist warned. “I thought I was saving time and money. I nearly paid with my eyes,” she said.
Victor Aham
Moving from individual experience to a broader pattern, Mr. Victor Aham shared a similar story: “I ordered two packets of this herbal capsule of eye cleanser, but, unfortunately, my sight did not improve. They are just ripping off Nigerians”, he said with regret
Chinyere Ogbue
Likewise, Chinyere Ogbue described a more expensive deception: “I bought two different types of eye care products. One is like herbal tea while the other is called a cold compressor. One costs N24,000. There is also the one they call eye roller, and another eye herbal tea, N18,000 per pack. I was deceived that it would clear my eyes within two weeks. Nothing happened. No one gives money back. I have gone back to my former prescriptions.”
These eye-related cases, however, are only the tip of the iceberg. The problem extends to unregulated remedies for chronic conditions like hypertension and diabetes. Online sellers push natural capsules that promise to replace prescription drugs such as amlodipine or metformin, often encouraging patients to discard their prescribed medication.
Joana
There was a 52-year-old trader, Joana, who collapsed at her stall in Balogun Market, Lagos, on 20th March 2025. For weeks, she had trusted a herbal mixture bought on Facebook to cure her high blood pressure. She abandoned her prescribed medication after being deceived that she would be cured in three weeks. Months later, her blood pressure spiked dangerously, and she was rushed to the hospital with a stroke. Doctors revealed that the concoction contained high levels of caffeine and harmful steroids.
Temitope
The dangers are not limited to cardiovascular health. Temitope, a 34-year-old civil servant, ordered a detox tea heavily promoted on Instagram by influencers to lose weight quickly. After weeks of use, she developed acute kidney injury, as tests revealed hidden diuretics and laxatives in the product.
Chinedu Ibe
Similarly, 28-year-old gym enthusiast Chinedu Ibe from Imo State relied on energy boosters purchased from a WhatsApp group. He suffered a hypertensive crisis and died before reaching the hospital. An autopsy revealed heart complications linked to stimulants in the capsules.
Mama Biodun
Users of these products cut across all ages. In Ibadan, 60-year-old retired teacher Mama Biodun abandoned her prescriptions for diabetes and hypertension after her daughter found a TikTok advert claiming a permanent cure. Weeks later, she was hospitalised with a hypertensive emergency and impaired kidney function.
Today, these tragic cases are becoming alarmingly common. Saturday Vanguard findings show that every week, at least five Nigerian patients collapse after consuming unregulated herbal products. Many of these remedies contain steroids, caffeine, or diuretics, which can dangerously interact with prescribed medications. Pharmacists warn that the absence of strict monitoring allows unlicensed vendors to thrive online. For Amaka, Victor, Chinyere, Joana, Chinedu, Temitope and Mama Biodun, the lure of quick cures brought only pain. Their stories highlight a silent epidemic spreading through Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and TikTok, a marketplace of hope and deception where health is too often the price.
Medical experts warn
According to medical experts, there is no shortcut in managing chronic illnesses. They warned that miracle cures are killers, urging Nigerians to stick to tested treatments and certified prescriptions.
In the view of a Microbiologist, Dr. Usman Yahaya Umar, the misuse of drugs like antibiotics could lead to one’s death. Usman, who also serves as the HOD of the Department of Medical Microbiology at AKTH, in a report said: “A patient’s illness could be worse if they fail to conduct a proper test before going for medication, patronising roadside medical vendors, and indulging in self-medication.”
For Usman, there is a need for patients to conduct proper tests before taking prescription drugs, including antibiotics. The consequences of abandoning structured care are serious. According to cardiologists, they were seeing patients arrive in critical condition because they stopped their prescribed medications. They insisted that chronic diseases need structured, long-term care and not miracle cures.
The Medical Director of Optimal Cancer Care Foundation, Dr. Femi Olaleye, warned that using unprescribed or unverified drugs can worsen disease, mask serious conditions, or cause irreversible damage to any part of the body. He said for instance, many eye conditions look similar but require very different treatments. Some online products may even contain harmful or contaminated substances.
“I have seen patients with corneal ulcers, severe allergies, glaucoma complications, and even permanent vision loss from counterfeit or wrongly used products. Sadly, many only seek help when the damage is advanced. Red eye, conjunctivitis, and dry eye are commonly mismanaged through self-medication. More serious problems like glaucoma or keratitis may be missed completely, leading to blindness if proper diagnosis and treatment are delayed.”
He said: “It is very difficult for patients to tell, because counterfeiters copy packaging convincingly. The safest approach is to buy only from licensed pharmacies or recognized hospitals, and to check for proper NAFDAC registration numbers. When in doubt, consult an eye specialist.”
Adding her voice, the Chairperson, Nigerian Optometric Association, Lagos Branch, Dr Gloria Okoekhian-Ogulu stressed that the dangers extend far beyond temporary discomfort.
According to her, “There are several risks for patients who purchase eye care products without a prescription or consultation. Some eye conditions present similar symptoms but require different treatments. Purchasing a product without a diagnosis will delay the right treatment and sometimes lead to irreparable vision loss.
“Another risk is exposure to fake, expired, or even banned eye drops, which may contain harmful chemicals that complicate the initial problem. In practice, we see patients come in after using online drops that either trigger allergic reactions, damage the cornea, or worsen infections. Globally, there are reports of drug-resistant eye infections linked to contaminated online products.”
Pharmacists raise an alarm
Former President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN, Pharm. Olumide Akintayo, said bypassing pharmacists makes patients dangerously vulnerable. “Bypassing Pharmacists and Pharmacies in drug use makes you extremely vulnerable to drug-drug, drug-food, and drug-disease interactions, ADRs, side-effects, and other consequences which may cause morbidity or outright mortality.
We are however better off when the FMOH inaugurates PCN to enable it to apply full oversight responsibilities on Pharmacists and other entities it ought to register and license for practice. Compliance with the guidelines on online Pharmacy sequel to the registration of the online Pharmacy is important”, he said.
Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer and Superintendent Pharmacist, Engraced Pharmacy, Jonah Okotie emphasised that medicines are poisons meant to be handled only with professional guidance. He noted that, “Bypassing physicians and pharmacists for so-called ‘ogbongè’ products online is nothing more than taking a very high risk with one’s life at a click. Online drug sales are the future, but ethics and professionalism must not be eroded.
Medicines are a national security issue—uncontrolled access puts everyone at risk, especially children, the old, and the weak.
“Online is nothing more than taking a chance, a very high risk with one’s life at a click. Online drug sales on their own are the future Pharmacy outlet. So, everyone should prepare for it. However, many still prefer to have face-to-face contact with their healthcare provider. There must be a marriage of both sides.”
Doctors call for urgent action
For Lagos State Chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, Dr. Saheed Babajide, the situation is both unethical and life-threatening. He said, “Nobody has the right to prescribe drugs or self-medicate. It is illegal for anybody to make false advertisements—whether in newspapers, on TV, or on social media. The implication is confusion in healthcare delivery. Many Nigerians are using fake, unregistered drugs that cause severe side effects and even death.
“What we see every day is kidney failure, strokes, blindness, and even mental illness linked to misuse of these drugs. Anybody involved should be prosecuted. Nigerians must also stop buying drugs through social media.” He added that: “We should not trade the health of Nigerians for money. Authorities must take action. NAFDAC must wake up. It is not about raiding Idumota or Onitsha markets alone; they must go after social media and media platforms promoting these products.”
Regulators’ response
Responding, the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, Prof. Christianah Adeyeye, acknowledged the growing challenge. She revealed that NAFDAC has been monitoring online drug markets by deploying corps members and interns to track sales on Instagram, Facebook, Jiji, Jumia, and Konga. Reports are submitted weekly, leading to investigations, arrests, and shutdowns.
“The sale of unregistered or counterfeit eye drops and other healthcare products online has become a growing concern in Nigeria,” Adeyeye said. “We have identified and sanctioned multiple unregistered products in the past. Some offenders were shut down, with fines ranging from ¦ 200,000 for micro businesses to ¦ 5 million for larger ones. We closed some of the facilities. We made an arrest and handed over the suspect to I&E for further investigation and prosecution.”
According to her, “technology is also being deployed. NAFDAC is working with Jumia and Konga on compliance frameworks, introducing the Scan2Verify system and the Green Book to help buyers confirm authenticity before purchase. Consumers are encouraged to verify the authenticity of any eye care product by referencing the Green Book, a NAFDAC-approved directory that lists registered products,” she said.
Despite these measures, Adeyeye admitted that the rise of small businesses and personal platforms complicates enforcement. But she maintained that NAFDAC was committed to improving monitoring systems and intensifying sensitisation to protect Nigerians from counterfeit online products.
“NAFDAC has conducted several investigations into the online sale of medical products, including eye drops, drugs, and cosmetics. We have identified and sanctioned multiple unregistered products in the past. Recently, the agency’s efforts led to the discovery of a client selling unregistered cosmetics online. This intelligence was traced to a physical facility, and the vendor was arrested. The arrest led to the uncovering of additional illicit activities in Abuja, prompting ongoing investigations,” she added.
Also speaking, the former Registrar of the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria, PCN, Dr. Elijah Mohamed, described the trend as “unfortunate and dangerous.”
According to him, “Nigerians are so engrossed in internet activities, they now patronize all sorts of things online. The implication is exposure to fake drugs, self-prescription, abuse, and misuse. Their health will always be at risk.
“The PCN is currently putting policies in place to regulate online distribution and sales. Once fully enforced, it will help us checkmate illegal involvement. Meanwhile, Nigerians should focus only on online pharmacies with a physical presence in Nigeria—because if anything goes wrong, we can trace them. I encourage people to go to their physicians for prescriptions and then to pharmacies to get them filled. That is the only way health can be properly monitored and to ensure it is safe. Otherwise, self-medication will spread with devastating consequences.”
The silent danger
As Nigeria’s digital marketplace continues to expand, the country now faces a hidden health crisis growing behind the glow of smartphone screens. For Amaka and others like her, the promise of quick fixes nearly cost them their sight—or even their lives. Without urgent action, more Nigerians may discover too late that a simple click can be deadly.
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