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Weight Loss Pill - Is There Really Any Need?

By David McEvoy

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Published: 03Jul2006
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For those of you who have tried, unsuccessfully, to lose weight, and believe that diet pills might be the perfect solution, consider this! If there were such a thing as a magic pill to do it all for you, why are there so many people who are still carrying excess weight and struggling to lose it?

The answer to losing weight is startlingly simple. Weight can only be lost by decreasing your intake of calories whilst ideally, at the same time, increasing the number of calories you burn off. You have to eat less than your body uses up in energy, over a period of time. Diet pills are designed to artificially induce this very scenario in one or more of several different ways. However, a word of caution, not only can they cause some very unpleasant side effects, and can in some cases pose a serious threat to your health, there is little or no evidence to suggest that they produce any lasting results whatsoever. Most people who do experience some weight loss whilst taking diet pills, simply put it all straight back on again afterwards, as can be borne out by the number of people who have tried them and yet who are still overweight.

The following are a few of the more common diet pills available, either over the counter or on prescription, and a brief description of what they are trying to do.

Adipex, Bontril, Ionamin or Phentermine, all work by suppressing your appetite so that your brain tricks your body into thinking that it is full. This makes you eat less so reduces the number of calories you consume. Didrex (benzphetamine hydrochloride) stimulates your nervous system so that you burn more calories; it also suppresses your appetite. Phendimetrazine and Tenuate work in a similar way to amphetamines (speed) so basically they boost your metabolism to help to increase the amount of calories you burn up whilst at the same time, decreasing your appetite. Reductil or Sibutramine work by limiting the reuptake of seratonin and noradrenaline in the brain. This will have the effect of making you feel good so you are less likely to comfort eat, and makes you feel full earlier than you normally would. Xenical doesn't suppress your appetite or help you burn more calories; it works by inhibiting the absorption of fats so that fewer calories find their way into your body.

So, there are three main ways in which diet pills bring about a negative calorie intake.

1. They suppress your appetite so that you consume less calories.
2. They boost your metabolism to help you to burn more calories.
3. They prevent the absorption of fats (and also nutrients too) so that fewer calories are retained by the body.

What about the side effects? First, you have to be able to cope with the pressure that the pills put on your body so if you already have high blood pressure or heart problems for example, then diet pills can be exceptionally risky as they can increase your blood pressure and your heart rate. Other side effects that can be produced by diet pills include, but are not restricted to, risk of addiction, dry mouth, nausea, digestive problems (constipation and/or diarrhoea), headache, dizziness, insomnia, drowsiness, nervousness, blurred vision, confusion, agitation, breathlessness, excessive flatulence, stomach cramps and vomiting. They can also interact with some other medications you might be taking to either increase or counteract their effectiveness.

When you consider the associated health risks of diet pills and that they are simply trying to mimic artificially what you are perfectly capable of doing quite naturally yourself, then you must surely wonder if there is any need for them at all. If you want to lose weight, then wouldn't it make more sense to go for the safer and healthier option of eating a good diet and reducing the number of calories you consume? To speed up the process you can combine this with an increase in your activity level by adopting a simple exercise programme, even walking for 30 minutes a day will make a difference. The weight will come off over time and you will feel healthier and more alive, have more energy, and what's more, there are no risks whatsoever.

Dave Mcevoy is an award winning personal trainer he also runs a high quality supplement site that sells a high quality omega 3 fish oil EPA

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