Each and every ‘diet pill death’ is one too many.

This week, we’ve heard about the tragic death of Eloise Parry, a 21 year old who drove herself to hospital when she felt unwell after taking diet pills she’d bought online. The dose was fatal and she died on 12 April at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

The toxin, sold online as a fat-burning diet pill, has been attributed to more than 63 deaths worldwide… But how many more people will lose their lives before something changes?

Attempts to classify the substance as ‘Class C’ drugs have failed. They can be bought and sold legally as a fertiliser, therefore the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) has no power to prevent its use as a drug because it is not a pharmaceutical.

After deaths that in 2013 were attributed to the same drug that killed Eloise Parry, the FSA launched an education campaign…