How Diet Pills Work

With over 60 percent of Americans considered overweight or obese, it is no surprise that weight loss pills are a big business as each year millions of Americans try to trim those excess pounds. While there are hundreds of products that claim to offer the cure to weight problems many of them focus on different areas, some on dieting, others on lifestyles and still others on more unconventional means.

Diet pills have been some of the most popular in these products with many of them promising the “magical” effect to losing the weight. So the question is asked, can they deliver or are they fake. It is quite true that many of these pills have been linked to serious health problems and even deaths and some of them can only be obtained through a prescription. So let’s do the numbers and see.

Prescription Drugs

Drugs like Meridia and Xenical are available by prescription only and are scrutinized and regulated by the FDA and CDER (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research). Many of these drugs carry serious side effects and because of which require close monitoring from prescribing doctors.

Over-the-counter

These drugs do not require a prescription and can be picked up at just about any drugstore or supermarket. Although they are regulated by the FDA and are considered to be “weight control” instead of “dietary supplements” (regulated by the FDA). These drugs mainly contain phenylpropanolamine (PPA). The FDA has asked drug manufacturers to reformulate PPA containing products as evidence has linked this substance to strokes. Because of this, few diet pills currently exist that contain this ingredient.

Herbal supplements

These supplements are derived from plants and do not require a prescription. Large quantities and variations of these herbal supplements exist and are freely available at supermarkets, and health stores. The FDA considers these supplements to be opposing to drugs and thus fall under the jurisdiction of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition arm.

Other drugs that are administered as a patch, powder or liquid may fall under any of the above categories and are regulated by their respective classifications