Warning: The “Glucocare” Diabetes Capsules Circulating Online Are a Fraud! Prof. Katulanda’s Identity Has Been Stolen

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Paid advertisements on social media have been directing Sri Lankan users to a website called “treatmentforhealthylife.store,” which promotes a product named “Glucocare” capsules, claiming it can permanently cure diabetes. The site invokes the name and credentials of a respected Sri Lankan endocrinologist, displays certificates from the WHO, EU, and Bayer, and presents fake testimonials from Sri Lankan customers. Every element of this is fabricated. Below is our fact-check.

Social Media Posts :

The fraudulent website claimed that Prof. Prasad Katulanda has served as President of the Medical Association since 2021 and as Director of the Department of Endocrinology in Sri Lanka, and that he has approved “Glucocare” for diabetes treatment. It further presented the product as certified by the European Union, the World Health Organization (WHO), and Bayer. The website is shown below.

treatmentforhealthylife.store (Archived)

The advertisements appeared on Facebook in the following form:

In addition to the paid ads, the product has also been promoted through a Facebook page since last year, as shown below.

Facebook | Facebook

We investigated the accuracy of these claims.

Fact-Check :

Falsified Official Credentials

Although the website describes Prof. Prasad Katulanda as President of the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) since 2021, the current SLMA President is Dr. Manilka Sumanathilaka, a consultant endocrinologist specialising in diabetes and hormone-related disorders.

According to the official historical records of the Sri Lanka College of Endocrinologists (SLCE), Prof. Prasad Katulanda served as SLCE President during 2013–2014 only. Since 2021, the position has been held successively by Dr. Manilka Sumanathilaka, Dr. Charles Antonypillai, Dr. Chaminda Garusinghe, and Dr. Dimuthu Muthukuda.

Bayer Does Not Manufacture Any Product Called “Glucocare”

The website names the well-known German pharmaceutical company Bayer AG as the manufacturer. Bayer is one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies. Their legitimate diabetes medication is Glucobay. Bayer does not manufacture any diabetes medication or supplement under the name “Glucocare.”

Misuse of International Organisation Names and Logos

The website displayed a certificate claiming the product had been certified by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The WHO does not issue certifications of this nature for private company products, nor does it permit its logo to be printed on commercial medicines. Similarly, the European Union does not endorse private pharmaceutical products or authorise the use of its official logo on such items. 

The EU does require legally operating online pharmacies to display a common EU logo identifying authorised sellers, but this is an anti-fraud measure, not an endorsement.

The certificate on this website fraudulently displays both the EU and WHO logos as endorsements. It is completely fabricated, produced using Photoshop or similar software, and carries no authenticity whatsoever.

The fine print on the certificate states that the product complies with the “European Directive on Machinery 2006/42/EC.” This exposes fraud:

•   EU Directive 2006/42/EC applies exclusively to industrial machinery, heavy vehicles, and engines; not medicines.

•   Pharmaceutical capsules or tablets cannot be classified as “machinery” under any circumstances.

“Glucocare” Is Not Registered With Sri Lanka’s National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA)

Under Sri Lankan law, any tablet or capsule claiming to control blood sugar levels must undergo rigorous evaluation and approval by the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA). For a product like this to be legally imported or sold in Sri Lanka:

•   The foreign manufacturing facility must be registered with the NMRA.

•   The National Medicines Quality Assurance Laboratory (NMQAL) must confirm through testing that the ingredients are safe for human use.

Further details on the NMRA regulatory framework are available here, here, and here.

As “Glucocare” is being sold illegally without regulatory approval, it carries no NMRA registration number. The registration status of any medicine in Sri Lanka can be verified on the NMRA’s official platform mediverify.lk. A search there confirms that this product has not been approved.

Any legally sold medicine in Sri Lanka must carry an NMRA registration number (NMRA/MD/ or NMRA/B/), along with the date of manufacture, expiry date, and batch number on the label. An examination of the product photographs on this website shows none of these are present.

Fake Customer Testimonials

In the “customer reviews” section of the website, the names given, such as “Kamal, Nimal, and Priyanthi”, which are common Sinhalese names. However, the photographs used alongside those names are stolen from foreign individuals found on the internet. This strongly suggests the reviews were fabricated using bots or automated scripts to deceive Sri Lankan users.

Website URL Analysis

The website URL (treatmentforhealthylife.store/?media_type=image&adid=GVO…) contains multiple tracking parameters — such as utm_source=facebook and utm_medium=paid — commonly used to track users and collect marketing data.

•   “Store” domains of this type are typically newly registered and are not connected to any recognised medical institution, pharmaceutical company, or Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Health.

•   Cloaking (fraudulent behaviour): These websites are engineered to appear as normal websites to Facebook’s ad review systems, while redirecting ordinary users to pages showing fake medical articles and fabricated customer reviews.

Statement From SLCE Officials

We contacted the Information Technology and Communications Officer of the Sri Lanka College of Endocrinologists (SLCE). She confirmed that the website and its advertisements are completely fake, that neither the SLCE nor Prof. Prasad Katulanda has ever produced or endorsed such a product, and requested the public not to be misled by these claims.

Also Read: GRACIA LATTE Weight Loss Product Found to Be a Fraudulent Scheme

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Conclusion :

The “Glucocare” promotional website is a complete fraud. It steals the name and credentials of Professor Prasad Katulanda, misuses the logos of the WHO and the EU, falsely claims Bayer as its manufacturer, presents stolen photographs of foreign individuals as Sri Lankan customer testimonials, and displays a forged “engineering machinery” certificate as a pharmaceutical approval.

The product is not registered with the NMRA and has not been approved for sale in Sri Lanka. Consuming unverified, substandard capsules of this kind can cause serious health complications, including kidney failure and life-threatening outcomes. The public is strongly advised to report such advertisements immediately on Facebook and not to purchase or consume this product.