Combining weight-loss supplements with a diet sounds like a good way to increase your chances of weight-loss success. In some cases, this may be true; a pill that suppresses your appetite might make it easier to stick to a low-calorie diet, for example. In the case of Alli, an over-the-counter version of the prescription drug Xenical, which reduces your fat absorption, combined with the Atkins diet, which allows high dietary fat intake, a combination method may not be prudent.
Definitions
Alli is the first over-the-counter drug to be approved for weight loss. Alli, like Xenical, contains the drug orlistat, but Alli contains only half the dose of Xenical, 60 mg to 120 mg. Even though it contains only half the dose, GlaxoSmithKline reports that it provides 85 percent of the fat absorption achieved with the higher dose. Orlistat interferes with fat absorption by inhibiting lipase enzymes that break down fat in the intestine. Because the fat isn't broken down, it's not absorbed. Alli doesn't disrupt all fat absorption, just around 25 percent of the fat you eat, GlaxoSmithKline, the manufacturer of the drug, reports. The Atkins diet is a low-carbohydrate diet that allows high protein and fat intake, so you may consume more fat on the Atkins diet that you might ordinarily eat.
Interactions
In some ways, taking Alli while on the Atkins diet seems like a perfect combination: the Atkins diet lets you eat fat and Alli blocks fat absorption. If it were this simple, the combination really would be a marriage made in dietary heaven. However, when fat isn't absorbed, it's excreted by the body when you take Alli. When large amounts of fat are excreted, your body can't handle the excess. GlaxoSmithKline suggests limiting dietary fat to 15 g per meal; that amount of fat will allow Alli to work without causing unpleasant side effects, it claims. On the Atkins diet, it's easy to surpass the 15 g limit. Because fat equal 9 calories per g, 135 calories from fat would equal 15 g. Following the Atkins diet, the average Atkins eater probably consumes 45 to 60 percent of calories per day from fat, Stephen Barrett, M.D. reports on QuackWatch. If you're consuming 1,500 calories per day, this would equal around 750 calories per day, or 250 calories per meal, well over the 135 calories of fat recommended to avoid side effects.
Effects
If you eat more than 15 g of fat at a meal, Alli will still break down around 25 percent. The excess fat is then expelled, sometimes forcefully or without warning, in the form of orange-colored fat globules, gas and/or diarrhea. Alli also causes stomach cramps in around 20 percent of people, eMedTV reports. The more fat you consume, the more likely you are to have these problems.
Considerations
Alli can decrease your fat absorption, which can result in weight loss. However, if you overdo fat intake, the side effects can be physically severe as well as socially embarrassing. While Alli may work well if you eat a low-fat diet, it's better not to take a fat blocker on a high-fat diet, Michael Eades, M.D. recommends on his website, DrsEades.com.
Member Comments