Do Weight Loss Pills Work
Pharmacy counters are stacked with vast variety of Over The Counter weight-loss pills: fat burners, fat binders, diuretics, orlistat…
But do weight loss diet pills really work?
What needs to be done to get the desired results of losing weight safely and fast?
Read entire blog post to find answers to these questions quickly.
How do diet pills work?
Over-the-counter diet pills hardly give the desired results if they are not accompanied by a change in lifestyle.
According to the European Regional Report on Obesity 2022, published by the Office of the World Health Organization (WHO), 59% of European adults are overweight or obese and practically all countries exceed rates of 50%.
These figures give us an idea of the epidemic proportions that obesity has reached and also why pills that promise to lose weight quickly are in such high demand.
DO DIET PILLS WORK?
The sale of slimming products is the most popular in pharmacies. According to the words of Dr. Diego Bellido, a specialist in endocrinology and nutrition and former vice-president of the Spanish Society for the Study of Obesity (SEEDO), spending on obesity treatments amounts to practically 20% of global pharmaceutical spending.
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But what do the experts think about diet pills that are sold without a prescription? For Bellido there are no serious clinical trials that demonstrate its effectiveness.
More than half of Spaniards are obese or overweight.
That, he tells us, does not mean that at a particular level there are people who consider that its use is going well for them, but “they are subjective situations, which do not have any statistically significant repercussions at the population level “, clarifies the endocrinologist.
Rosa Arnau, president of the Official College of Pharmacists of Castellón, maintains that “the pill alone will hardly give the desired results if it is not accompanied by a change in lifestyle.”
Something fundamental also for doctor Bellido: ” diet with change of habits and regular exercise are the basis of treatment,” he says.
HOW DO FAT BURNING PILLS WORK?
The claim of certain pills and supplements to lose weight is that, thanks to them, the metabolic cost increases.
If we take a look at its ingredients, we see that they usually contain natural substances that are considered thermogenic, such as green or red tea, green coffee, guarana or caffeine.
But, in order for them to help increase metabolic expenditure, again, it is essential that the diet be balanced and that physical exercise be done on a regular basis.
As they are stimulant substances, it is not convenient for you to take them if you have trouble sleeping.
Regarding the strictly pharmacological treatment, for Bellido there is no medication that causes this thermogenic effect today, and this is explained because it would greatly increase the heart rate.
Despite this, ” it is a very interesting line of research for the future “, says the expert.
HOW DO FAT Binding PILLS WORK?
Diet pills that promise to block and bind fat are another popular option. The most common active principles of this type of pills are three:
DIET PILLS WITH L-CARNITINE
As Rosa Arnau explains, L-carnitine is essential for fats to enter the mitochondria, which are in charge of using them as energy (that is, burning them).
What happens if you take diuretics to lose weight?
“This substance works as a fat burner, but only in quantities of about 4 grams per day (which are considered very high) and after a sustained intake of more than six months. From then on, its effects begin to be noticed… but only when you do intense exercise, ”says the pharmacist.
CHITOSAN DIET PILLS
This component is extracted from the shells of crustaceans and has the ability to absorb fat ” as if it were a sponge”, explains Arnau.
It then carries them to the large intestine to be consumed by the intestinal flora, a mechanism that can cause gas to form.
WHAT IS ORLISTAT
It is the active principle of a medicine for obesity that has two versions: a more powerful one, which is sold with a prescription, and a milder one, which can be bought without it.
“ It is a derivative of lipstatin, a substance that inhibits the enzyme that cuts fats (lipase) in the intestine. Since they are not cut, they cannot be absorbed and are eliminated in the feces”, explains Rosa Arnau.
The expert also tells us that it can cause side effects such as greasy diarrhea , the urge to go to the bathroom, nausea, vomiting, headaches, or even depressive problems.
HOW LONG CAN YOU TAKE DIET PILLS?
It depends, above all, on the composition. Although, as the pharmacist emphasizes, “ they are certainly not intended to be consumed chronically. It is best to follow the manufacturer’s instructions and the advice of our doctor or pharmacist.
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Keep in mind that, even if they are sold without a prescription…
Its use is contraindicated in several cases , for example, if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, have diabetes, hypertension, heart or thyroid gland disorders.
They are also not recommended in case of suffering from inflammatory diseases of the intestinal tract or if there is a medical history of constipation.
Hypertensive people or people with thyroid disorders should not take them
Fat-binding pills can interact with other drugs and reduce the effectiveness of, for example, birth control pills and preparations used to treat menopause. ” To avoid this, at least four hours must pass between the consumption of one and the other,” warns Rosa Arnau.
These types of products “can help in long-term treatments, but knowing that they are a support and not the fundamental mechanism for losing weight,” concludes the pharmacist.
