Soylent Green Collagen

If you live in the UK and you've ever had collagen injections for lip or wrinkle treatments, do you have any idea where that collagen has come from? According to this Guardian special report, it could come from skin harvested from the corpses of executed Chinese convicts. "The agents [for the collagen import firm] say some of the company's products have been exported to the UK, and that the use of skin from condemned convicts is 'traditional' and nothing to 'make such a big fuss about'." The special report goes on to state:

Peter Butler, a consultant plastic surgeon and government adviser, said there had been rumours that Chinese surgeons had performed hand transplants using hands from executed prisoners. One transplant centre was believed to be adjacent to an execution ground. "I can see the utility of it, as they have access and no ethical objection," he said. "The main concern would be infective risk."

I think there have been several horror movies made with premises similar to this.

Body Manipulation Gross

Posted on Tue Sep 13, 2005


Comments

ewww, that just seems wrong..love the quote

"the use of skin from condemned convicts is 'traditional' and nothing to 'make such a big fuss about'"

not so sure the users of the product will feel that way
Posted by Chuck  on  Tue Sep 13, 2005  at  01:56 PM
Please, please tell me that paper is a fake one...
Posted by Fay-Fay  on  Tue Sep 13, 2005  at  02:08 PM
I've seen reports before that the Chinese government was "harvesting" organs from prisoners and then selling them. As tightly controlled as information is in China, I don't know whether or not such claims can be verified (or disproven).
Posted by Big Gary in Dallas  on  Tue Sep 13, 2005  at  04:52 PM
Disgusting. Another reason to look on those shallow, gaudy stars with puffed up lips with disdain.
Posted by Reynard Muldrake  on  Tue Sep 13, 2005  at  11:29 PM
Animal products have been used for centuries in cosmetics. I don't really see much difference, so long as they do take precautions to limit the infective risk.
Posted by Accipiter  on  Wed Sep 14, 2005  at  02:21 AM
It seems that anything goes as long as it's traditional..? Perhaps it's time to update their traditions to more recent ethic standards.
Posted by Buzter  on  Wed Sep 14, 2005  at  05:46 AM
Please, please tell me that paper is a real one...
Posted by peter  on  Wed Sep 14, 2005  at  10:53 AM
What paper, peter? The Guardian? Yes, it's a real newspaper. It's one of the major dailies in Great Britain. That doesn't mean everything in it is true, of course.
Posted by Big Gary in Dallas  on  Wed Sep 14, 2005  at  04:35 PM
The Chinese gov't did just use dead bodies for a museum display titled "Bodies".
Posted by Maegan  on  Thu Sep 15, 2005  at  05:44 AM
Could well be genuine. There are allergy risks with animal tissue transplants and products, so human or gene-modified organism items are much preffered for many purposes. Corpse skin for burns victims, for example, is being used to replce cultured foreskin grafts as fewer foreskins are being removed in the US; also, the foreskin contains receptors for certian bacteria that you don't want to latch onto a ill burns victim.
Posted by DFStuckey  on  Wed Sep 28, 2005  at  10:39 PM
ha ha i saw that movie 😊
Posted by tim  on  Thu Mar 30, 2006  at  07:15 AM
:cheese: That would make a stupid movie title
"Soylent Green Collagen": Soylent and ....deadly!
Any ideas on posters?
Posted by exmortisfangirl  on  Fri Mar 14, 2008  at  02:29 PM
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