Weight Loss Supplements – Worth The Risk ?

Weight loss seems a relatively easy task given the number of weight loss supplements and diets that flood today’s markets. But don’t be too optimistic, most of these don’t work and some are even detrimental to health. If weight loss is on the to-do list, exercise is going to come in someday.

 The US CDC (Centre for Disease Control and Prevention) noted that almost 17% of children and teens are obese. A third of American adults are obese. Obviously, something is going wrong somewhere in the diet and lifestyle of these young Americans.

Formulations to lose weight “safely and permanently” without “dieting and exercise” are available everywhere your gaze falls. They are marketed as creams, powders, patches, teas, pills, capsules, you name it. But the safety of these products has been questioned repeatedly by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and finally laid rest to speculation by announcing that some maybe harmful to health. Which is harmful and which not is the fact of the matter now.

FDA refuses to approve such supplements and so obviously the claims of being FDA approved are all false. So it has given out a list of taglines that people use to market their products that one must doubly check before swearing by-

1. Speedy weight loss- Claims of losing 10pounds in a week, probably unsafe.
2. Guaranteed/ Scientific Breakthrough- Beware, you don’t want to try this one.
3. Mass emailing for marketing a product
4. Foreign language on the label
5. Claiming “herbal alternative” to an FDA- approved drug
6. Claiming similar results as a conventional medicine drug.

OTC drugs make tall claims like suppressing hunger and helping lose weight etc. Common sense dictates that suppressing hunger is wrong, why opt for a drug which does that? Products containing exotic berries and plant extracts like Hoodia, etc are touted as weight loss miracles without any real conclusive scientific evidence to back it.

Also, the safety is dubious. Another product called Alli which is actually a FDA approved drug blocks fat absorption and thereby helps in weight loss. But the potential side effects are numerous and clearly mentioned. If side-effects list is missing, think again. Anything that has effects is bound to have a side-effect, however small and negligible.

Even prescription drugs, clearly, cannot guarantee weight loss. Thus the American Dietetic Association reported that No specific dietary supplement is effective in reducing body weight and that should be kept in mind before falling for another online marketing gimmick.  Always apply caution before buying pills online go with only trusted sources and do your research.

Related Products: