Health Canada warns against use of health products containing ibogaine

TORONTO – Health Canada is warning Canadians they should not take products being sold as drug addiction treatments that contain an ingredient called ibogaine.

The department says it has received a report of a person experiencing abnormal heart rhythms after taking Remogen, a product containing ibogaine.

There have also been international reports of serious reactions linked to products containing ibogaine.

Those reactions include death, respiratory arrest, cardiac problems such as irregular heartbeat, seizures and symptoms related to psychiatric and metabolic dysfunction.

Health Canada recently seized a variety of unauthorized products containing ibogaine from Phytostan Enterprise Inc., a distributor in Quebec; the company has agreed to stop importing and selling these products.

There are no licensed health products containing ibogaine in Canada.

Ibogaine is a natural ingredient with medicinal properties. It is extracted from the root bark of an African shrub.

Health Canada says it is working with the Canada Border Services Agency to prevent future imports of products containing ibogaine.