Weight Loss Drugs – Are They Miracle Weight Loss Products?

March 15, 2009 by admin
Filed under Weight Loss Drugs

Many people are looking for “magic weight-loss products” and turn to weight loss drugs.

Some of the obesity drugs approved by FDA are:

Dexedrine and other amphetamines, Ionamin and Adipex-P (phentermine), Sanorex (mazindol), Tenuate (diethylpropion), Prelu-2 (phendimetrazine) and other amphetamine derivatives, meridia (sibutramine), xenical (orlistat).

FDA approved the weight loss drugs only for use with calorie-restricted diets, according to a report published by FDA. The drugs are “not magic pills,” warns Leo Lutwak, M.D., Ph.D., of FDA’s division of metabolism and endocrine drug products. “They don’t work unless you make dietary and exercise changes.”

Also, they should be used only for a few weeks because the drugs are addictive and have the potential for abuse. They shouldn’t be used in combination with each other or with other drugs for appetite control because such combinations have not been evaluated for safety.

And the drugs should be used only in people who are obese–not people looking to lose a few pounds, Lutwak says. “Weight-loss drugs are serious medicine for a serious disease,” he says.

For overweight but not obese people it is better to follow a simple exercise and diet regime instead of taking weight-loss drugs. These drugs have a long list of side effects and hence, are dangerous for health.

Some side effects of popular weight-loss drugs:

Xenical – skin rash, tooth problems, vomiting, vaginal inflammation, respiratory tract infections, headache, dizziness, fatigue. Xenical also decreases the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins along with dietary fat. Alli is over-the-counter medication. It has half the strength of Xenical.

Meridia can cause insomnia, constipation and not recommended for people with a higher risk of cardiovascular heart disease.

Phentermine can cause depression, irritability, insomnia, affect the blood pressure.

As it was already mentioned in the article weight loss drugs might be appropriate for obese people but not for simply overweight ones.

The problem is that people do not believe in themselves in their ability to make things happen, to decide something and then take actions to make it a reality. That’s why they feel a need in “something” from outside, something that can help them magically lose weight. In reality there is really no magic in weight loss. Consume less calories, exercise, make sure to have adequate rest, detoxify your body and you will lose your weight and maintain it guaranteed.