Diet drugs line the shelves in drugstores and supermarkets, each announcing the healthiest or fastest way to shed pounds. Some pills help you shed weight by losing water weight or increasing your heart rate to speed up your metabolism. While this may sound like a good idea, over time it can be hazardous to your health.
History
The 1930s brought a precursor to the diet pill: a chemical called dinitrophenol, which claimed to prevent food energy from being turned into fat. Doctors first started prescribing diet pills to patients in the 1950s in the form of amphetamines, says DocShop.com. The same type of drug was used in World War II to keep soldiers awake and alert, and doctors found a side effect of the drug to be appetite suppression. Diet drugs became more popular from the 1970s to the present day due to the increased media focus on exercise and diet programs. Many of these drugs contained appetite suppressors, including fenfluramine, phentermine and phenylpropanolamine.
Function
Diet drugs were created to help the user lose weight. Many of these drugs incorporated a stimulant into the pills not only to suppress appetite, but also to speed up the heart rate and increase metabolism. For example, ephedra was used as a diet drug for its stimulant and thermogenic, or metabolism boosting, properties. Diet drugs containing ephedra were banned from the shelves in April 2004, however, after being linked to many serious side effects and a few deaths.
Effects
Diet drugs are known to increase the heart rate, especially the drugs containing stimulants such as caffeine and amphetamines. While the stimulants can help you lose weight, MayoClinic.com warns that side effects can include insomnia, mild hypertension, heart palpitations or irregular heartbeat, heart attacks and other circulatory problems. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued recommendations in 1997 for people who took the diet drugs fenfluramine or dexfenfluramine, stating these people should have a physical examination to determine if they have signs or symptoms of lung or heart disease. The HHS also recommends that those with a heart murmur or shortness of breath have an echocardiogram performed.
Types
The market contains many types of diet pills, including metabolism boosters, absorption blockers and appetite suppressants. Both thermogenics and appetite suppressants usually contain some form of a stimulant. Thermogenics are designed to increase the body's ability to burn calories by increasing the internal temperature, heart rate and blood pressure. Appetite suppressants decrease the feelings of hunger, like the experience you have after drinking a cup of coffee.
Warnings
Check with a doctor before starting any weight loss regimen. Make sure the diet drug you are considering will not interfere with any prescription medications you are currently taking. If you find your heart races after drinking a cup of coffee or ingesting other food or drink containing caffeine, do not take diet drugs containing caffeine or other stimulants.
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