An Irish man in his 20s has died following the suspected consumption of a slimming product that he purchased online.

According to the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA), the product contained Dinitrophenol (DNP), which is ‘not fit for human consumption'.

DNP is an industrial chemical that is considered extremely dangerous to human health. It accelerates the body's metabolism, which can trigger a number of serious side-effects including major damage to the heart and nervous system.

Just last April, an English student, Eloise (Ella) Parry, died after taking slimming tablets containing DNP. According to her mother, while hospital staff did all they could to stabilise her, she was ‘literally burning up from within'.

At that time, the HPRA issued a warning to Irish people not to purchase slimming products over the internet. Following the death of the young Irish man, it is reiterating this appeal.

The authority said that to date, a small number of tablets containing DNP have been detained. However as the internet is unregulated, it is concerned that more of these dangerous products may have been purchased by Irish consumers.

"The information we have at this time indicates that this young man consumed DNP and our thoughts are with his family. These investigations are ongoing, and we strongly urge members of the public to never use the internet to source slimming products or any prescription medicines at any time. No amount of these products is safe to take," commented HPRA chief executive, Pat O'Mahony.

He pointed out that bogus websites ‘can be very sophisticated and appear to be legitimate'. However, the reality is that these sites are selling potentially unsafe and harmful products.

"Laboratory analysis of products detained in the past has shown that medicines being sold through illicit websites will often contain too little or too much of the active ingredient or may contain undeclared and harmful substances," he said.

The HPRA is advising anyone who has taken DNP and is feeling unwell, to contact their doctor immediately. Any leftover product should not be taken and can be collected by the HPRA for disposal.

For more information on the dangers of buying medicines online, click here