False posts promote unregistered effervescent tablet for treating range of kidney problems

"Say goodbye to kidney stones after 7 days," says a Facebook post shared on August 28.

"With just two effervescent tablets of Kidneys Nano every day, kidney stones will disappear whatever size they are."

The post features a 20-minute video that displays what appears to show a "Certificate of Registration" for the product. The document bears a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) logo (archived link).

A woman speaking in the video goes on to claim the product can "prevent kidney failure" in patients with diabetes, hypertension and other medical conditions.

She says the main ingredient of "Kidneys Nano" is "Desmodium styracifolium" -- a traditional herb in Vietnam (archived link).

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Screenshot of false post taken on September 21, 2023

Kidney stones form when there are excess minerals and salts from a person's urine (archived link). This painful medical condition is usually found in one or both kidneys or in parts of the urinary tract (archived link).

Kidney failure happens when the kidneys no longer function effectively (archived link). Patients experiencing kidney failure need dialysis or a transplant to stay alive.

Similar Facebook posts promoting the product here, here, and here have racked up over 1.3 million views, attracting comments from people expressing interest to purchase "Kidneys Nano".

"Can a patient on dialysis take this?" asked one.

"How long should I take this? Do I stop after seven days?" wrote another.

Fabricated certification

The posts in fact share a fabricated document making it seem as if the product has US FDA approval.

Jeremy Khan, Media Relations Director of the FDA, told AFP on September 27: "The FDA does not issue registration certificates for any regulated establishment, including drug manufacturers."

A review of the US FDA's databases here, here and here did not find a registration for "Kidneys Nano" (archived links here, here and here).

Keyword searches also found no registration for "Kidneys Nano" in the Philippine FDA's database of drugs and food products as of October 23 (archived links here and here).

'Extravagant' claims

Dr Michael Mendoza of the Philippine Urological Association told AFP on September 25: "That's an extravagant claim, to be able to treat any stones of any size within seven days. It's not possible" (archived link).

He said treatment for kidney stones could range from medications taken for at least a month, to surgery, depending on the specific condition.

According to the US National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, managing diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease can help prevent kidney disease (archived link).

This includes getting physically active, staying at a healthy weight, making healthy food choices and taking prescribed medication.

Similar advice could be seen on the websites of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the UK National Health Services (archived links here and here).

Dr Philip Tan-Gatue, a physician and certified traditional Chinese medicine practitioner in Manila cautioned against online claims about kidney treatments (archived link).

"Any questions regarding medications, supplements should be directed to one's personal physician," he told AFP on October 18.