How to check a NAFDAC registration, and why the number is not an endorsement

Nearly every herbal product sold in this category displays a registration number. Most buyers take the presence of a number as proof that the regulator has checked the product and approved it as effective. That is not what a registration means, and this article explains the difference — then gives you a way to check the number yourself.

A NAFDAC registration is a registration of a product. It is not a statement that the product is effective, safe for every person, or approved to treat any health condition. No registration number, ours included, is evidence of effectiveness.

What registration actually covers

Regulatory registration in Nigeria is generally concerned with the product matching what was submitted: the formulation, the manufacturing process, the labelling, and the premises. It is a compliance check on what the manufacturer declared. It is not a clinical trial of whether the product does anything, and it is not an endorsement of any claim made on the packaging or on a website.

1. 1.Take the registration number from the product itself — the carton, the label, or the website listing it.
2. 2.Go to the NAFDAC site and use their public product-search or verification tool.
3. 3.Search the number, then check that the product name, form and manufacturer on the record match what you actually received.
4. 4.Confirm the status is active rather than suspended or withdrawn.
5. 5.Check that the number on the physical product is the number on the record. Mismatched packaging is a genuine signal to walk away.

Why this matters in this specific category

There is peer-reviewed published evidence that some herbal products marketed for male sexual health in Nigeria have been found to contain heavy metals including lead, cadmium and cobalt, at levels well above what is permitted. The study is real and its findings are not in dispute. This is a category-specific problem, documented by researchers who tested products they bought the same way any consumer would.

That study is the reason to check your own product carefully. It is not a claim about any particular brand, and nothing in this article should be read as an accusation against a named competitor. Contamination has been found in products from multiple manufacturers; if you want to know about the product in your hand, check it.

Other things worth checking while you have the box

• —Batch or lot number and expiry date. A product with neither is not something to buy.
• —A manufacturer name and a physical address of some kind, even if it is not a shopfront you can visit.
• —An intact seal. Broken or re-glued packaging is a reason to stop.
• —An ingredient list you can actually read, in a language you can read.
• —Usage instructions that came with the product rather than only being described on a sales page.

Where DE-RANGER stands on this

Our registration number is SWZ-OD-01-1222-224L, and it is printed on our site because we think you should be able to check it rather than take our word for it. We also state plainly that registration is not evidence of effectiveness. We would rather you check the number and find it disappointing than have you trust a number that was never meant to carry that weight.

If you are ever unsure whether something you have bought is what it claims to be, take the packaging and the number to NAFDAC directly, and speak to a pharmacist or doctor about anything you are considering taking. That is genuinely better advice than anything on this page.