Skip to content

Weight Loss Drugs: Why You Need To Be Very Careful

It sounds so easy – just take a pill and you’ll be able to lose that weight and be super slim again, but alas things aren’t as simple as they appear to be. While some weight loss drugs do work many have been proven to be very dangerous. They work by suppressing your appetite so you don’t feel hungry with the idea that if you are not hungry you won’t want to eat. Of course many times people overeat for other reasons than hunger, they eat for boredom, to heal emotions or sometimes just because the food is there in front of them.

Over the counter weight loss drugs that you can purchase without a doctor’s prescription should be looked at with care. Many times these drugs are not as effective as they claim and can even compromise your health so make sure you read the information enclosed carefully for safety precautions.

And then of course there are the diet pills that work only if you are on a low fat low calorie diet. Which is ironic because going on a low fat low calorie diet will make you lose weight, so what do the pills do? It begs the question whether the pills are really responsible for the weight loss or the diet plan is helping you drop those pounds.

Prescription weight loss medication are similar to the over the counter versions in that they help you feel full and take away the urge to binge, but like all drugs there are risks and side effects associated with many different brands so make sure you follow your doctors advice carefully and inform him if you are experiencing any side effects.

Some of the more extreme side effects from taking weight loss pills are hypertension, high blood pressure, heart attack, psychosis and depression. There have also been cases with some weight loss drugs where people have died both with over the counter and prescription medications which begs the question is your life and health worth the risk just to feel less hungry.

Herbal remedies are also popular as weight loss remedies but these are drugs too and should be treated with the same caution as other medicines. Just because something is natural doesn’t mean it is safe, or even works as claimed.

Overall you need to be very careful if you are considering weight loss drugs or pills. Make sure you get medical advice and make your own judgments whether they are right for you or not.

Posted in weight loss pills.

Tagged with .

No comments

By admin – March 28, 2009

Should You Take Weight Loss Medications?

There are a number of new weight loss medications available on the market today. However, these drugs are not intended for the average person who has an extra 10 pounds to lose before their wedding. Prescription weight loss medications are designed for people who are significantly obese or have weight-related medical problems that must be corrected quickly to prevent further complications. Here is a basic guide to determining if weight loss drugs may be right for you. Of course, you must always consult your doctor for a thorough evaluation and prescription.

There are certain guidelines concerning who may be prescribed weight loss medications. A patient must have a body mass index that is over 30, unless they have other obesity-related health conditions such as heart problems, diabetes, or high blood pressure. These severe medical conditions lower the body mass index requirement to 27. Whether or not a medical condition is obesity-related and grounds for prescribing medication can depend on the doctor, so get a second opinion if you disagree with your doctor’s assessment. These health problems can become severe if left unchecked and prescription weight loss medications may be the answer you have been looking for.

The most common weight loss medications work by suppressing the appetite. These types of diet aids have been around for decades, with amphetamines and Dexedrine being used even back in the 1950s. A new type of appetite suppressant drugs use a slightly different mechanism to achieve the same result, reducing their appeal for abuse. For example, the popular drug Meridia inhibits the release of a certain type of brain chemical that is responsible for signaling hunger. This way, the patient never even gets hungry, so there is no feeling of depriving themselves of something they want. Unfortunately, Meridia is known to increase blood pressure and heart rate, making it unsafe for many people with cardiovascular issues.

Besides the weight loss medications that suppress appetite, there is another class of drugs designed to interfere with the body’s ability to absorb fat from food. Xenical was the first of these lipase inhibitor medications to be approved, hitting the market in 1999. These drugs work by inhibiting the body’s production of lipase, which is a necessary part of the fat absoprtion process. Without this enzyme, fat molecules cannot be broken down and will pass harmlessly through the digestive system. The side effects of Xenical show the drawback to letting fat leave the body in its unprocessed state, with cramps, flatulence, diarrhea, and anal leakage being the most common.

Testing is always being performed on new drugs for the commercial markets, so it is only a matter of time before there are better options for people wishing to lose weight. Some developmental medicines have received short-term FDA approval, but they have shown too many side effects to be approved for mainstream use at this time. With some more refining by the pharmaceutical companies’ research and development departments, they should be available as part of the next wave of prescription weight loss medications.

Posted in weight loss pills.

Tagged with .

No comments

By admin – March 28, 2009

Advantages of Going to the Gym

There are many advantages of going to the gym to work out and it makes sense for a lot of people. Having a gym membership and attending classes you get access to the very best trainers and equipment that you just don’t have at home. Plus you are making a commitment to yourself and your body to get fit which can sometimes be lacking when you try and workout on your own.

Obviously having access to the proper equipment and exercising in a luxurious environment with other likeminded people can have its benefits, especially if there are qualified trainers on hand to help you use the gym equipment properly.

Of course going to the gym can be costly, and many gyms have a bad reputation for being more focused on signing up new membership fees rather than providing a quality environment to those members who currently attend, so you need to make sure that the gym that you are considering attending has a good reputation and professional trainers.

Many gyms allow you a one week trial period to try it out before you join to see if it’s something you like, so check if the gym you are thinking of joining also has such an offer.

Another advantage of going to the gym is the wide variety of exercise classes that you can do and many gyms are now embracing yoga and Pilates as part of their core programs. You can really get a very good workout with a combination of strength training on the equipment, cardio training on the spin bikes, and flexibility from taking a yoga class to get a full rounded workout.

Many gyms offer great extra facilities as well, such as swimming pools, steam room and even qualified nutritionist’s on hand for diet advice. It’s these little extra’s that make going to the gym a much better experience than working out at home and provides a real advantage of going to gym.

Posted in exercise.

Tagged with , .

1 comment

By admin – March 27, 2009

How to Choose the Right Diet for You & Lose Weight

I was flicking through my favorite magazine the other day and inside it had not one, not even two but four different diets that you could choose from all claiming that you could lose weight on them. Do a search online and you’ll find thousands of them all saying something different: eat this, avoid carbs, combine foods, foods for your blood type, high protein, low fat, raw food … arrgh – no wonder people are confused! What happened to the simple eat healthy and exercise plan?

Of course in reality we know deep down that no one diet is right for everyone and while your neighbor down the road might be doing well with Weight Watchers and your sister swears by the Atkins diet, the diet that might be right for you could be something else entirely. So how do you choose which is the right diet for you to help you lose weight? This article will help you cut the fat and try and get a straight answer.

Most diets today used a variation on eating only X amount of calories. While they may try and convince you to avoid some foods or only eat others, usually it’s because the foods that are on the banned list are high in fat and calories and the foods that you should be eating are low calorie instead of them having some magical fat burning ingredient in them as some diets claim.

Try and avoid diets that focus only on specific foods or food groups (such as the grapefruit or cookie diet) and focus on those that allow most foods and seem reasonable in their expectations. Also diet plans that allow some sort of flexibility are far more realistic than those that are rigid in their menu choices.

The right diet should have delicious, healthy food and not leave you hungry or wanting more. A good plan will allow you to mix and match your favorites or offer alternatives if you don’t like a particular food.

Use your gut instinct (yes I totally meant that pun) and narrow down the choice to the top two or three plans that fit your lifestyle the best and choose your favorite to start with. Keep going on that plan for at least three or four weeks to see how you are feeling and whether you are losing weight or not. If you are feeling full, the food is healthy and you are steadily losing around 2 pounds a week this could be the right diet for you, if not choose the next one on your list and try that.

Make sure you give each plan a reasonable amount of time to work. Many diets require a little bit of adjustment in the beginning until you get the hang of it, but after a few days you should be used to it and starting to feel the effects. A good diet will give you lots of energy and make you feel great. Don’t listen to any plan or expert that says you need to starve yourself or suffer to lose weight – that is simply not true.

Everybody has different lifestyles and difference expectations so that is why some types of foods have different effects on different people, but once you’ve found a winner and something you can stick with you are well on your way to a slimmer sexier you.

Posted in diet.

Tagged with , .

No comments

By admin – March 26, 2009

The Slim Fast Diet

Let’s face facts – you are reading this blog post because you want to lose weight and you are considering the Slim Fast diet because you’ve seen the ads on tv or in magazines. And I don’t blame you, those ads are convincing and the people seem to drop their pounds very fast. In fact, you’ve probably seen the ads so often that you could recit the slogan right now: ‘A healthy shake for breakfast one for lunch and a sensible dinner.’ But before I give my opinion on whether I think it’s a good option or not, let’s take a closer look at it . Continued…

Posted in diet.

Tagged with .

No comments

By admin – March 25, 2009