Despite any shiny promises made in ads, slimming pills of any kind are not a "magic bullet" for weight loss, warns the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. You must combine your intake of diet pills with proper eating habits and exercise, and also accept that some slimming pills have potentially serious side effects. Also, in some cases, once you stop taking the pills you regain any lost weight.
Heart Problems
A few types of slimming pills caused such serious heart problems in dieters that they were removed from the market. Prescription fen-phen, a combination of the appetite suppressants fenfluramine and phentermine, was banned by the Food and Drug Administration in 1997. Over-the-counter ephedra, another appetite suppressant often combined with caffeine, also caused serious and sometimes fatal heart problems in dieters and thus was banned in 2004. The prescription appetite suppressant sibutramine, or Meridia, was also banned in 2010 due to an unacceptable number of cardiac-related problems in patients taking the drug.
Phentermine Side Effects
Phentermine of fen-phen notoriety is not a banned appetite suppressant, as medical researchers with the Mayo Clinic and the Food and Drug Administration discovered that fenfluramine was the ingredient that caused heart damage in patients. But phentermine carries the risk of addiction in some patients, which is why most doctors only prescribe it for three to six weeks at a time. Potential side effects include anxiety, insomnia, increased blood pressure, dry mouth, diarrhea, vomiting and an unpleasant taste in the mouth. Phentermine, on the market since 1959, is the most commonly prescribed diet drug in the United States.
Orlistat and Liver Injury
Orlistat is a diet drug available over-the-counter under the brand name Alli or by a doctor's prescription under the brand name Xenical, according to PubMed Health. In 2009, researchers with the Food and Drug Administration started investigating patient claims that orlistat had caused them serious liver injuries. As of 2011, orlistat in all forms is still on the market. Signs of liver injury include jaundice, light-colored stools and dark-colored urine.
Orlistat and Bowel Problems
The most common complaint attributed to orlistat use involves problematic bowel movements, notes PubMed Health. Patients who eat more than 15 grams of fat per meal are more likely to experience painful and embarrassing symptoms such as uncontrollable bowel movements, gas that releases oil onto their underwear, frequent bowel movements, rectal pain, severe stomachaches, fatty stools and oily stools.
References
- Food and Drug Administration: Fen-Phen Safety Update Information
- Weight-control Information Network; Prescription Medications for the Treatment of Obesity; December 2010
- PubMed Health: Phentermine
- PubMed Health: Orlistat
- Mayo Clinic: Ephedra
- Food and Drug Administration: FDA Recommends Against the Continued Use of Meridia
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