‘Nose tanners left me suffocated in the hospital’

A woman has explained how she was left “unable to breathe” in the hospital after a serious response to an unlicensed nose tanning spray purchased online.

Edith Eagle said she felt that she was “suffocating” and “drowning inside her body” after the allergy collapse she believes that she was associated with the product.

The nasal tanars are designed to spray in the nostril and claim to work by administering a substance known as melanotan II, a chemical that blacks the pigment of the skin.

In the UK it is illegal to sell pharmacological products containing melanotan II, but as the tanner is sold cosmetically, they fall out of that remit.

However, they are not covered by UK cosmetics rules, meaning they are not subject to the same investigation as other over-the-counter beauty products.

Experts have said that they have not been fully researched and may include toxic elements.

Ms. Eagle said that she bought Tanners online that she would give her a quick and easy bronze look to Fuereventura in April 2023.

She was recommended by someone she knew, but she said she did not realize that he was unlicensed and irregular.

47 -year -old from Kings Lynn in Norfolk, left spray twice a day, assuming that it would give him time to make “before the sun”.

But on the second day of the journey, he was rushed to the hospital after a clear allergic reaction.

“I really couldn’t breathe,” he said.

“And whatever happened in my mind, would I also reach the hospital because I could not breathe.

“I can’t even understand it, but I was suffocating inside. It was as if I was drowning inside my body.”

Ms. Eagle said that she became suspicious after her step -daughter, who also used a tanner, saw a Facebook post from someone who said that she had also received bad response.

He told the advisor of his hospital, who asked where he bought the Tanner and what was there.

He too became suspicious, he said.

“Of course, it had nothing to do with a beautiful label on the front side, there was no material. There was nothing, in fact, I could show it. And it was a terrible thing,” he said.

“Once I was allowed to go back to the hotel, the advisor said” Remember next time you can’t be so lucky. “

Products are promoted on social media and are easily available to buy online, while BBC has also advertised beauty salons and tanning shops for sale.

The BBC North West and North East Investigation Team visited the High Street campus, to see how easy they had to get.

In Manchester and on Mercestic, a reporter managed to buy several sprays from the salon between £ 20 and £ 25, not a acceptance of minimum instructions and any risk or dangers.

In Newcastle, a staff member in a gym sold a “extreme spray” to a reporter for 25 pounds, with oral instructions to use it before taking a sun bed.

In addition, on Mercesis, the BBC was able to buy a “quadruple power” spray on the proposal for £ 20, the reporter advised to use the morning and night.

The Test of the University of Sunderland found that out of the 10 samples purchased by the BBC, the melanotan II exists in separate strength.

Stephen Children, a senior lecturer at a pharmaceutical chemistry, said: “The amount of this drug has a large number of discrepancy, who are buying.

“The higher the dose, the greater the risks and the more side effects are likely to be included.”

He said that samples that did not have an active component were not necessarily safe as they could include other chemicals that could be “toxic”.

“Any unlicensed product actually comes with a complete host of dangers. There is no safety data. There are no long -term studies as an impact on people’s health,” Mr. Children said.

Another concern is that the nasal tanner is often promoted to use as a combination with sessions on sunbeds to maximize their effectiveness as part of a tanning routine.

Cancer charity believes that it can significantly increase the risk of skin cancer growth.

The Kerry Refety, who started charity melanoma-meter after her diagnosis, described the products as a “skin cancer in a bottle”.

“It’s absolutely terrible, you have found these tanners that no one really knows what is in them and then they (can) get quick with sunbed use, which we know that causes melanoma, so it’s a great concern,” he said.

“I think this may be a reason that melanoma has increased at this time.”

data from North waste cancer research It is shown that in the northwest of England, people were likely to develop skin cancer than the rest of the country.

Chief Executive Alastair Richards said that the desire for “that tanded look” can often resort to excessive use of nasal tanners such as sunbeds and products.

He said that the correct effect of using such products may not be clear for years and can cause the increasing risk of cancer involved in less people.

“Many of these products are aimed at the aim of young people, especially through social media,” he said.

“The real danger is that when they can no longer experience harmful effects, they will increase their risk of skin cancer in the long run.”

Since nasal tanners are not a medicinal product, they do not need to be authorized, approved or registered before they are sold.

For trade and trade, the government’s department said: “Nasal tanning sprays are not covered by UK cosmetic rules and hence they should follow the General Product Safety Regulation 2005.

“This means that any person selling this product, including online, should ensure that they are safe before keeping them in the market.”

BBC News asked all stores seen by reporters what steps they had taken their products to meet these regulation requirements.

None of them has responded.

Additional Reporting by Cole Howe and Jessica Ure