Faculty of Science and TechnologyDepartment of Archaeology, Anthropology and Forensic ScienceBournemouth UniversityPooleUnited Kingdom.
Faculty of ManagementBournemouth UniversityPooleUnited Kingdom.
JMIR Public Health Surveill. 2016 Jul 18;2(2):e34. doi: 10.2196/publichealth.5390.
In recent years, lifestyle products have emerged to help improve people's physical and mental performance. The Internet plays a major role in the spread of these products. However, the literature has reported issues regarding the authenticity of medicines purchased from the Internet and the impact of counterfeit medicines on public health. Little or no data are available on the authenticity of lifestyle products and actual toxicity associated with their use and misuse.
Our aim was to investigate consumer and patient attitudes toward the purchase of lifestyle products from the Internet, their knowledge of product authenticity and toxicity, and their experiences with counterfeit lifestyle products.
A Web-based study was performed between May 2014 and May 2015. Uniform collection of data was performed through an anonymous online questionnaire. Participants were invited worldwide via email, social media, or personal communication to complete the online questionnaire. A total of 320 participants completed the questionnaire.
The results of the questionnaire showed that 208 (65.0%) participants purchased lifestyle products from the Internet mainly due to convenience and reduced cost. More than half (55.6%, 178/320) of participants purchased cosmetic products, whereas only a minority purchased medicinal products. Yet, 62.8% (201/320) of participants were aware of the presence of counterfeit lifestyle products from the Internet, and 11.9% (38/320) experienced counterfeit products. In only 0.9% (3/320) of those cases were counterfeit lifestyle products reported to authorities. Moreover, 7.2% (23/320) of the participants experienced adverse effects due to counterfeit lifestyle products.
In summary, patients experienced counterfeit lifestyle products that resulted in adverse effects on their health. Although certain adverse effects were reported in this study, counterfeit products were underreported to authorities. Further public awareness campaigns and patient education are needed.
近年来，出现了许多有助于改善人们身心健康的生活方式产品。互联网在这些产品的传播中发挥了重要作用。然而，文献报道了从互联网购买的药品的真实性问题，以及假药对公众健康的影响。关于生活方式产品的真实性以及与其使用和滥用相关的实际毒性的数据很少或没有。
我们旨在调查消费者和患者对从互联网购买生活方式产品的态度、他们对产品真实性和毒性的了解，以及他们购买和使用假冒生活方式产品的经历。
我们于 2014 年 5 月至 2015 年 5 月进行了一项基于网络的研究。通过匿名在线问卷统一收集数据。我们通过电子邮件、社交媒体或个人联系邀请世界各地的参与者完成在线问卷。共有 320 名参与者完成了问卷。
问卷结果显示，208 名（65.0%）参与者主要因为方便和降低成本而从互联网购买生活方式产品。超过一半（55.6%，178/320）的参与者购买了化妆品，而只有少数人购买了药品。然而，62.8%（320/320）的参与者意识到互联网上存在假冒的生活方式产品，11.9%（38/320）的参与者经历过假冒产品。在这些情况下，只有 0.9%（3/320）向当局报告了假冒的生活方式产品。此外，7.2%（23/320）的参与者因假冒生活方式产品而出现不良反应。
总之，患者使用了假冒的生活方式产品，导致健康受到不良影响。尽管本研究报告了某些不良反应，但假冒产品向当局报告的比例较低。需要进一步开展公众宣传和患者教育。
