Almost 400,000 units of illegal and falsified medicines were seized between January and June this year, according to the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA).
It represents a reduction on the number seized during the same period last year when over 700,000 units were seized by authorities.
The most recent seizures included sedatives, anabolic steroids, erectile dysfunction medicines, and more than 10,000 unauthorised GLP-1 patches claiming to contain semaglutide or tirzepatide, used for weight loss and for people with diabetes.
The HPRA is reminding the public today that purchasing prescription medicines from unregulated sources means people can not be sure what they are getting.
It said that these products may be unsafe, ineffective, or fake - and could seriously harm health.
Gráinne Power, Director of Compliance at the HPRA, advised the public to safeguard their health by only using prescription medicines under the guidance of a qualified healthcare professional and by sourcing products authorised for the Irish market from a registered pharmacy.
The HPRA said that 2,820 websites, webpages, e-commerce listings and/or social media pages amended or shutdown in the first six months of this year.
The authority works in close co-operation with colleagues from An Garda Síochána and Revenue's Customs Service.
