Diet Pills - Are they worth the risk?
As I am writing this article, there are pharmaceutical companies spending every researching minute on finding the next wonder diet busting drug that will make us slim throughout our entire lives. Fortunately for the pharmaceutical companies, the public at large are ever optimistic and would prefer to pop a pill than consider a long term diet and exercise program.
Currently there are three new antiobesity drugs that have been approved for use which take us one step closer to weight loss nirvana. However, only two of them have been approved by the FDA in the US.
The FDA have approved as slimming aids the weight loss drugs Meridia (known as Reductil in Europe) and Xenical. These drugs have been shown to lead to weight loss of between 5-10% of total bodyweight over a year - although the weight lost is regained once the course of treatment has finished. However, both these pills have undesirable side effects. Meridia has been associated with elevated blood pressure, constipation and sleep disorders, whereas Xenical's most inconvenient side effect has to be oily spotting on pants, making it a prerequisite to find a toilet every time you need to f*rt.
Meridia works as an appetite suppressant. Xenical works by reducing the absorption of fat from the food we eat. The other new drug, Acomplia, is the one that has not yet been approved by the FDA. This drug is an endocanniboid antagonist. Put simply, when a person smokes cannabis or certain other illegal substancies, they get "the munchies" and have been known to eat duvet sized bags of crisps on occasions. This is because cannabis stimulates the appetite by stimulating the endocanniboid receptors. Research scientists wondered what would happen if they could produce a drug that blocks the endocanniboid receptors, would that reduce a person's appetite? In fact, the researchers hypothesis was found to be correct. Acomplia does reduce a person's appetite. It also reduces other addictions such as a craving for a cigarette (although it has not yet received approval as being an aid to stopping smoking.) In addition, Acomplia had positive side effects including improving the blood lipid profile and controlling blood sugar levels in patients with type II diabetes.
However, there is unfortunately a downside. Blocking the endocanniboid receptors leads to psychiatric disorders in up to 10% of people who are prescribed the drug. This is why it has not been approved by the FDA in the US, and is approved but contraindicated for people suffering from depression in Europe. It seems that there is sometimes a price to pay if we mess with the workings of the human brain.
So back to the original question - diet pills, are they worth the risk? Well the answer depends upon your current weight and the risk that it poses to your health, your general overall health (eg do you have high cholesterol, type II diabetes?) and your general state of mind. It has to be a decision based on the individual. However, if you are in generally good health and only have a small amount of weight to lose, I would recommend losing it by the old fashioned boring way - diet and exercise.