The Kenyan government has prohibited the sale and use of vaginal detox products known as Yoni pearls.
Through The Pharmacy and Poisons Board, the government has banned the sale, promotion and distribution of the goods, sometimes known as herbal tampons, cleansing pearls, or vaginal pearls, stating that they are neither registered nor authorized for use in the nation.
“The PPB notifies the public that Yoni pearls is neither registered nor authorized for use in Kenya as required under the Pharmacy and poisons Act Cap 244,” PPB CEO Fred Siyoi said.
The board further warned Kenyans that the drug might be poison and should be avoided.
“In light of this, PPB strongly advices against the distribution, supply, sale or use of the aforementioned product and any other unregistered products with similar claims,” said PPB.
“Therefore their usage poses potential health risks as the PPB cannot guarantee their quality safety and efficacy.”
Yoni Pearls took over the Kenyan market by storm following a series of influencer marketing and online campaigns preaching how effective and some of its benefits.
Daily Nation first exposed the drug as a scam following a series of complaints from its customers.
According to the investigation, approximately 200,000 posts on Instagram with #yonipearls were visible in the platform’s ‘recent’ posts when a mobile search for yoni pearls was conducted, with the majority of posts reportedly published between mid-2020 and early 2021 by Instagram retailers.
It’s not yet clear how many sales the product has clocked so far.
PPB has additionally requested that members of the public and medical professionals report any dubious health items and technology to the board via the website or the USSD code *271#.
