Do diet pills work?

Orlistat (trade name: Xenical)
Another fat blocker but this drug is only available via prescription. Orlistat helps you to lose weight and to keep the weight off by reducing the amount of fat (around 30%) that is absorbed in the gut during digestion. Enzymes in your intestinal tract helps to break down fat, when you take Orlistat with meals, the drug attaches itself to these enzymes and blocks them from digesting some of the fat from the foods you've eaten. The undigested fat therefore can?t be absorbed and is eliminated in your bowel movements. Scientific studies have shown that around 10% of the initial body weight can be lost by taking Orlistat over the course of one year. Because some of the fat from foods can't be digested, you need to follow a low fat diet otherwise you'll get diarrhoea. Orlistat is available only through prescription so you will need to ask your doctor, it is usually recommended only for those who are overweight or obese (that is have a body mass index of 27 and over) and who have risk factors such as diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Reductil
This prescription appetite suppressant drug contains sibutramine hydrochloride monohydrate and is used for weight loss and weight maintenance. It works on brain chemicals to reduce your appetite and give you a sense of fullness and helps make you feel satisfied even after eating less food. Reductil is recommended for people who are overweight or obese, that is have a BMI of 27 or over and who have risk factors such as high cholesterol or diabetes. Scientific studies have shown that Reductil can help people lose weight and maintain their weight loss but the weight loss tends to remain stable at around 10% of the weight they started with.

Herbal diet pills
There are a number of herbal diet pills available without prescription which claims to help with weight loss. Just because these herbal supplements are 'natural', it doesn't mean that they are 'safe' in large doses. The Food and Drug Administration had received more than 800 reports linking Ephedra (ma huang) or weight loss pills containing ephedrine to high blood pressure, abnormal heart rate, heart attacks, strokes, seizures and even deaths. You need to take sufficiently large doses to lose weight, the FDA recommends that no more than 8 milligrams per day be taken and for no more than 7 consecutive days.

The bottom line: A low calorie, low fat diet together with exercise are keys to weight loss, ask a health professional for their advice before you start taking over the counter diet pills and always read the label and don't take more than the recommended amount.