cover of episode How to spot fake drugs with a mobile phone

How to spot fake drugs with a mobile phone

2021/10/26
logo of podcast People Fixing the World

People Fixing the World

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Shownotes Transcript

Fake medicines are responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide each year. But inventors around the world are coming up with ways to spot the fakes.

In Nigeria, pharmacists are using a pocket-sized nanoscanner and mobile app to analyse light shone through a pill, powder or liquid.

A Ghanaian entrepreneur has developed a way to verify a barcode or a series of numbers on a box of medicine, using a mobile phone.

And in Finland, you can take photos of your medicine and get a detailed analysis of the packaging, pill or powder, to find out if it’s authentic or not.

Presented and produced by Hannah Gelbart

Image: Fake medicine