Are Weight Loss Products Beneficial?

What Are Weight Loss Products?

The nutrition market has been flooded with a wide range of "quick fixes" to help people lose weight. With the percentage of adults with obesity is rising fast, weight loss products can be seen as the answer. Changes in lifestyle and eating habits have made the battle with the bulge much more of a worldwide problem and most people battle with their weight at some point in their lives.

Some of these people use weight loss products to help fight fat and bring down their weight but what are they? Generally they come in many shapes and sizes ranging from tablets to shakes or meal replacements. They can be bought over the counter or are prescribed by your physician to assist you but they often lead to side effects. Most commonly they are found in tablet or pill form and should be taken with meals in the morning or evening and they consist of a selection of vitamins and drugs which increase metabolism and increase the body's thermo genic effect.

What Is In Weight Loss Products?

This is the million dollar question because even the prescribed versions of weight loss pills and products are made up of a selection of chemicals. It is important to check the chemicals and drugs that are in your weight loss products because the FDA has banned many because they contain PPA (phenylpropanolamine hydrochloride) which is an appetite suppressant that has been heavily linked to a risk of stroke. Other products contain a mixture of natural ingredients such as acai berries which have been linked to increased fat loss. Most commonly found in fat burners or metabolizers is caffeine and cayenne pepper because these natural boost fat metabolism and a substance called L-carnitine which has limited research where it is proven to lower fat. However, as well as the "nutritional" information on these pills always check the ingredients too because it is there you will see the range of chemicals that have been added. Cayenne pepper can easily be added to your diet!

See Also: Diet Pills And Weight Loss Facts

How Do They Work?

These products do not do anything that the body can't naturally do by itself. The main ingredients in fat burner and weight loss products are some form of pepper which naturally stimulates a thermogenic effect in the body which increases metabolism and tricks the body into burning fats more quickly. Other ingredients such as caffeine have a similar effect but as well as increasing the body's temperature the stimulant in caffeine increases the metabolism and helps us to burn more calories. These effects can be caused by the natural form of the ingredients but some products contain vitamins such as B vitamins which are energy boosters - the more energy we are producing the more calories and we are burning to produce that energy, because it breaks down stored fat and carbohydrates. Some prescription weight loss products safely suppress a person's appetite to help lower your daily calorie intake and others contain orlistat or Xenical which are medications that prevent the body from absorbing fats.

What are the positive and negatives?

Positives Of Weight Loss Products

• The British NHS reports after one year of clinical trials that one third to half of patients saw reductions on body fat percentage.
• They are particularly useful for patients who are morbidly obese and are unable to undertake an exercise program.
• They have been linked to a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes - but this is further linked to the fat percentage being lower and the people being generally healthier.
• Improved cardiovascular health due to being able to perform more aerobic exercises and becoming fitter.
• Increased energy - many of the pills have energy boosting vitamins and ingredients and this can help a person feel more energetic and more active.
• Suppression of appetite is a common positive among many products as this can help a person lower their calorie intake per day.
• Breaks down fat - some products actually do increase fat breakdown and lower fat absorption.

Negatives Of Weight Loss Products

• Fat blockers that stop fat absorption have many side effects such as oily stools, gastro-intestinal problems such as pain and discomfort.
• Appetite suppressant chemicals have been associated with addiction in such as way as is similar to amphetamines. These shouldn't be used for long periods of time and cannot be a long term solution.
• Increased risk of heart complications and stroke.
• Dizziness, fainting and decreased blood pressure has been linked to some weight loss products.
• Or even high blood pressure because of the dehydrating effect.
• Risk of other medical complications because of the mixture of chemicals that can be found in ones not prescribed by a doctor.
• Insomnia, nervousness, vomiting, blurred vision and headaches are linked to appetite suppressants.

Should You Take Them?

Whether or not you should take them has to be a personal choice but the best bit of advice is to seek medical advice before you start to take anything. This is because if you are overweight there may be other underlying health complications that you may not be aware of and adding an artificial pill to your diet could cause them to show side effects. Many of the products are safe and you need to make sure you check they are FDA approved and that they have all the relevant ingredients and nutritional information on the bottles and websites - if you are suspicious it is best to avoid them because it is your health that is most important.

See Also: Probiotics For Weight Loss?

If you are considering using a weight loss supplement make an appointment with your doctor because they may be able to prescribe a product that is most suited to you and it may be a cheaper way to get the same as you would buy from a website. Always weigh up the pros and cons before you make a decision. There are some great products available, but also some dodgy ones.