EGYPTIANS spend huge sums of money on sexual stimulants. Last year, sales of pharmaceutical products in general rose here by 19 per cent, while sales of sexual stimulants leaped by an incredible 103 per cent. Last year, an estimated 17 different sexual drugs were introduced into the local market. Egyptians now spend around LE15 billion ($2.7b) on them annually. That's just the official estimate ��" sales from pharmacies. Of course, a lot of stimulants are smuggled into the country too. Galal Abul Fath, who advises the Minister of Finance on customs issues, says that there were 12 smuggling incidents last year at Port Said, el-Dekheila, Alexandria and Ain Soukhna, where a colossal 34 million pills were found coming from China. The Secretary-General of the Pharmacologists' Association, Seif Allah Hassan, says that the traffickers delude the Egyptians into thinking that such pills are the magic solution for their sexual problems. Tramadol, normally used as a tranquilliser, has become popular as a sexual stimulant. Mosa'd Aweis, head of the Athletic Association, says that the media should do more to warn young people about the dangers of sexual stimulants. Meanwhile, the head of the Holding Company for Pharmaceutical Products, Magdi Hassan, says that all the local companies that produce sexual stimulants make huge profits. Because of the enormous demand for their products, they're not suffering from competition. Hassan adds that the smugglers will soon disappear from the picture, as the local companies can produce such stimulants for only a tenth of the price of the foreign companies. Ahmed el-Ezabi, a member of the Medical Drugs Importers' Section at the Chamber of Commerce, explains that the main problem with smuggling is the absence of control. This means that noone can guarantee that these drugs aren't dangerous. Professor of Psychiatry at Al-Azhar University Hashim Bahari points out that many people wrongly believe that achieving real happiness only means physical pleasure. “There are many other wonderful things in this life ��" reading, sports or even politics. All these things make people more self-confident and happy,” Dr Bahari notes. Dr Ahmed Farid Sameh, Dean of the School of Medicine, Cairo University, notes that the huge consumption of sexual stimulants in Egypt reflects a lack of self confidence, while the pills are often very attractive because they are so cheap. “There is an urgent need to limit the imports and local production of these stimulants. There must also be more surveillance of the black market. These drugs should only be sold in pharmacies by prescription. “Money should be spent on medical drugs to treat chronic diseases, rather than sexual stimulants, which can seriously damage people's health in the long run,” Dr Sameh stresses. Dr Kamal Sabra, a senior official in the Ministry of Health, told Akhbar Al- Youm weekly newspaper that so many stimulants are consumed her, because, unfortunately, they can be purchased without a prescription.
