Diet pills may help you lose weight by increasing your metabolism, decreasing your appetite or blocking the absorption of fat. However, diet pills should not be used to replace dieting or exercise, which are essential to weight loss. Diet pills have side effects that can be harmful to your health. Therefore, it is important to learn about the different diet pills available to you. Consult with your doctor before taking diet pills.
Over-the-Counter
The Food and Drug Administration treats diet pills differently than medication. In fact, diet pills are sold over the counter without thorough safety checks. Since independent clinical studies typically occur after diet pills are put on the market, there is usually insufficient evidence to support their use.
FDA Warnings
The FDA regulates diet pills after they are put on the market. If health concerns arise, the FDA investigates and may ban or recall a product, based on its findings. At the end of 2008, the FDA issued a press release stating its intention to recall 29 weight-loss products. In the beginning of January 2009, this release was revised to include 41 additional recalls. Reasons for recall included the presence of controlled or banned substances. Some ingredients were known carcinogens. In some products, the amount of an approved ingredient exceeded the FDA approved amount.
Arrhythmias
Diet pills contain substances that speed up your heart rate to help you burn calories. This can cause cardiac arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat. The prevalence of diet pills containing substances with cardiac adverse effects, was the focus of a study published in the May 2009 issue of "Heart Rhythm: The Official Journal of the Heart Rhythm Society." Researchers found that eight of the 12 nonprescription weight loss supplements studied contained at least one ingredient that was associated with life-threatening cardiac conditions or death. However, none of these products had any warning labels about the potential for heart problems.
Long Term Use
Most diet pills are for short-term use that lasts a few months. Of the few diet pills intended for long periods of time, only two are approved by the FDA. They are Meridia, generic name sibutramine, and Orlistat, generic name xenical. Meridia and Orlistat are prescription drugs for the treatment of obesity. In 2007 the FDA approved a lower dose of xenical to be sold over the counter under the trade name Alli. In 2009, the FDA uncovered a relationship between Alli and liver damage. As such, the FDA put a warning label on Alli indicating its potential to cause severe liver damage.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Over-the-Counter Weight-Loss Pills: Do They Work?
- "Heart Rhythm: The Official Journal of the Heart Rhythm Society"; Arrhythmogenicity of Weight-Loss Supplements Marketed on the Internet; A. Nazeri, et al.; May 2009
- UC Davis Health System; Can Diet Pills Help You Lose Weight?; Judith S. Stern
- MSN.com; Popular Diet Drug Gets Liver Damage Warning; The Associated Press; May 2010
- FDA.gov: FDA Expands Warning to Consumers About Tainted Weight Loss Pills; December 2008
Member Comments