A woman who took diet pills that may have contained a now banned ingredient died after suffering health problems during and following using them, an inquest heard yesterday. Wong Fung-yee, 35, who was 1.6 metres tall and weighed 73kg, complained of dizziness and a racing heart after she started in August 1997 to take Trim Right, a diet pill claimed to contain natural ingredients, the Coroner's Court heard. Wong bought the drug from Hoi Kei Beauty Salon, and took, according to instructions, four to six pills three times a day, said Wong Oi-yi, the dead woman's elder sister. Two months later, she collapsed. She went for a check-up where she was told she was suffering from hypertension. She stopped taking the pills and was prescribed medicine to lower her blood pressure. The inquest heard Wong also suffered from mild anaemia but was not prescribed medication for this condition. Her blood pressure remained high in February last year and in November she was admitted to Grantham Hospital, where she died on December 5 from hypertension, heart, liver and kidney failure. Trim Right, which cost $580 a bottle, was found in March last year to contain fenfluramine, an appetite suppressant which can lead to dizziness and high blood pressure. The substance's harmful effects on the heart were reported in late 1997 in overseas studies. Fion Lee Yuen-fan, whose company made the pills, told the court her firm imported a medicinal powder from Guangzhou in 1996. The powder was made into tablet form by a factory in Tsuen Wan and was certified to be free from harmful substances before going on sale in May 1997, it was claimed. In October 1997, Ms Lee was told that some diet pills from China contained a banned substance, so a second lab analysis was conducted testing for fenfluramine. It showed the pill did not contain the substance, she said. Kwok Kam-mui, owner of Hoi Kei Beauty Salon, said Ms Lee had reiterated to her after Wong's collapse that the pills were made in Canada. But Ms Lee said she was only referring to the Canadian seaweed contained in the pills. Ms Lee stopped selling the drug after a test in March last year revealed the drug contained fenfluramine. Coroner Paul Kelly said he could not return a verdict as he was unsure whether the pills contained fenfluramine when Wong took them. The case was adjourned until various experts are ready to give evidence.
