Starcaps diet pills were taken off the market in 2008 after they were found to be tainted with a powerful diuretic called bumetanide. According to the New York Post, the presence of the drug only came to light after six National Football League players tested positive for it after taking Starcaps and were ultimately suspended. Before this discovery, the pills were widely panned as ineffective because the herbal ingredients were never proved to promote weight loss.
Labeled Ingredients
Starcaps were labeled as containing papaya, garlic, valerian, corn spices and papain. Garlic is believed to help lower cholesterol and keep blood from clotting, and papaya is thought to soothe digestion troubles. Valerian is known as an herbal sedative that may help improve sleep cycles, and papain is simply an extract of papaya that is used in experimental wound care. None of the ingredients have any definitive connection with weight loss, and the United States National Library of Medicine has no data regarding the use of corn spices, as of March 2011.
Bumetanide
Starcaps was one of 72 weight-loss supplements the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found to be contaminated in 2008. The contaminants on the list varied, but in the case of Starcaps, the diuretic bumetanide was the offender. Bumetanide is typically used to treat fluid retention resulting from kidney disease, but its inclusion in Starcaps was likely an attempt to fool users into thinking they were losing weight when they were only shedding water weight. The FDA has removed the offending drugs from the market, but the makers of Starcaps removed them voluntarily.
Risks
Regardless of the herbal ingredients' effectiveness, they are not thought to be harmful. They could, however, interact with other medications. Bumetanide comes with a lengthy list of side effects. The diuretic is so powerful that normal use can cause dehydration and loss of electrolytes. Possible complications include vomiting, dizziness and diarrhea, and an unfavorable reaction can cause flu-like symptoms, hearing loss, severe rash, difficulty breathing and rapid weight loss. The weight loss comes from fluid, not fat.
Alternative
You should not take bumetadine unless your doctor prescribes it. The other ingredients are generally harmless, and if you think they can help you lose weight, they are available individually at any vitamin shop. Buying them individually means you'll know exactly what dose of each you are taking. Include fresh garlic and papaya in your diet. But keep in mind that weight loss doesn't come from herbs, but rather from burning more calories than you consume. A sensible diet and regular exercise will get you closer to your weight-loss goal than a bottle of pills.
References
- New York Post; Diet Pill Bankrupts Nikki Haskell; January 2010
- Diet Pill Reviews: Starcaps Diet Pill Review
- United States National Library of Medicine: Dietary Supplements Labels Database
- MedlinePlus: Bumetanide
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Questions and Answers about FDA's Initiative Against Contaminated Weight Loss Products
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