Diet pill, natural and herbal, that
work to control appetite and help with losing weight by
Ray Sahelian, M.D.
Alternatives to prescription weight loss medications
Diet pills are available by prescription or over the
counter. Over the counter diet pills can be either pharmaceutical or natural.
Another term for over the counter is ' non prescription.'
This page discusses the benefits of Diet Rx, a natural
diet pill that I have formulated. I am quite proud of Diet Rx. Almost every
patient who has taken Diet Rx has had a significant decrease in appetite and
food consumption. By taking a natural diet pill and eating less, positive
changes can occur in weight management, along with blood sugar, cholesterol, and
blood pressure. Eating less leads to improvement in metabolic syndrome which can
effect longevity.
A natural
appetite suppressant
If you would like to eat less, consider a diet pill product called Diet Rx. This natural
appetite suppressant works without stimulants. Diet Rx has no added caffeine, ephedra, ephedrine alkaloids, synephrine, hormones, guarana, ginseng, or
stimulating amino acids.
Benefits of Diet Rx diet pill
All
natural appetite suppressant, decreases appetite so you eat less
Helps you maintain healthy blood sugar levels
Helps you maintain healthy cholesterol and lipid levels
Provides a variety of antioxidant from two dozen herbs and nutrients
Provides healthy fiber
Improves energy
Balances mood
Improves mental concentration and focus
Improves will power and choice of food selection
Natural diet pills
There have been few studies with natural diet pills to
determine their long term effectiveness, but there are several that have
been promoted and marketed. You can find some of these herbs and nutrients in
natural diet pill products. Some of them help reduce appetite, others improve
metabolism or burn fat, still others help regulate blood sugar or blood lipid
levels. These include:
Hoodia is a cactus plant extract from the Kalahari
desert in South Africa that has become popular as a
weight loss pill.
Green tea extract is
sometimes used for weight loss.
Apple-Cider-Vinegar is obtained from the fermentation of apple juice which leads
to acetic acid.
Spirulina is green blue algae that is considered a superfood with a high protein
content. Spirulina has antioxidants,
Apple pectin is a healthy fiber that helps maintain healthy cholesterol levels
and is involved in weight management.
Choline is a pre-cursor to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Choline increases the
mobilization of fatty acids. Choline is needed for efficient fat metabolism.
Inositol combines with choline to assist in fat metabolism.
Carnitine or L-Carnitine is a main ingredient in many diet pills and
supplements. L-carnitine is found in an enzyme complex (carnitine
acyltransferase I, carnitine translocase, and carnitine acyltransferase II) that
helps transport long-chain fatty acids across into the mitochondria where fatty
acids can be metabolized efficiently.
Pomegranate is full of antioxidants that helps reduce damage to the inner lining
of blood vessels.
Psyllium is a fiber which absorbs water within the gut, causing increased
satiety and lower caloric intake. Psyllium is also helpful in keeping healthy
blood sugar and lipid levels.
Cayenne has capsaicin helps regulate blood sugar levels by affecting the
breakdown of carbohydrates after a meal.
Coleus forskohlii contains forskolin which increases Cyclic AMP thus influencing
membrane transport proteins and increasing fat metabolism..
Fenugreek helps with blood sugar control and reduces insulin resistance.
Guarana
exotic caffeine source
Guggul can help a sluggish thyroid gland and help the body to burn calories more
efficiently. Guggul also helps manage cholesterol levels.
Inulin is from the chicory plant. Inulin is a prebiotic fiber that helps reduce
food absorption but improves mineral absorption, including magnesium and
calcium.
Grapefruit extract - different grapefruit constituents influence intestinal and
liver lipid transport and metabolism.
Banaba extract helps check blood sugar and insulin levels. Fluctuations in blood
sugar and insulin are related to appetite and food cravings, particularly for
carbohydrates.
5-HTP is a nutrient that
helps curb appetite in some individuals.
Acetyl-l-Carnitine
may reduce appetite in some individuals.
Diet pill makers are fined
The Federal Trade Commission in January 2007 fined four weight
loss diet pill makers millions of dollars for making false advertising claims. Makers of the four products — Xenadrine EFX, CortiSlim, TrimSpa, and One-A-Day
Weight Smart — have settled with the FTC for more than $25 million, and agreed
to limit their future advertising claims. The products would remain on store
shelves, but that the companies would have to stop making the false claims.Some
of the claims made included rapid weight loss and reduction in the risk of
osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s and even cancer.
Two marketers of Xenadrine EFX will pay at least $8 million and as much as $12.8
million to settle FTC allegations that Xenadrine EFX’s weight-loss claims were
false and unsubstantiated. The firms who market CortiSlim and CortiStress
settled for at least $12 million. The makers of TrimSpa settled for $1.5
million. The Bayer Corporation, which makes One-A-Day Weight Smart, will pay a
$3.2 million and agreed to stop ads that say the multivitamins can increase
metabolism.
Xenadrine EFX contains, among other ingredients, green tea extract (EGCG),
caffeine, and bitter orange (Citrus aurantium),
Xenadrine EFX was advertised heavily in print
and on television, according to the FTC. The marketers
of Xenadrine had a study that said those who took a placebo actually lost more
weight than those taking the diet pill.
Some of the products marketed their claims through infomercials or celebrity
endorsements. Anna Nicole Smith, for example, has endorsed TrimSpa.
Safety of Diet Pills and side
effects
The long term safety and effectiveness of diet pills such as Xenical (known
generically as orlistat), Meridia (sibutramine) and Acomplia (rimonabant) needs
to be determined before they are prescribed widely. Orlistat and sibutramine are
currently approved for long-term use, while rimonabant is under review by the US
Food and Drug Administration. However, each of the diet pills carry potentially
important side effects. Treatment with the diet pill orlistat is associated with
frequent gastrointestinal side effects, sibutramine may raise blood pressure and
heart rate, and rimonabant may increase the risk of mood disorders.
Best diet pill for Weight Loss
I am often asked what is the most effective or best diet pill for weight loss.
There are literally thousands of over the
counter diet pill products and It is difficult to pick the best diet pill out of
all of these that are available. Furthermore, different people have different
preferences. Some people think green tea diet pill is most effective, others
like hoodia diet pill products. In my opinion, the best diet pill product is a
good combination of several natural herbs and supplements.
Herbal Diet pills that work
I can only tell you what I have learned about herbal diet pills that work by
reading the research on natural diet pills, feedback from users, my own personal
experiences, and also feedback from patients. In my opinion, the diet pills that
work most of the time are green tea extract and hoodia.
A new diet pill
In October of 2007, I formulated a new diet pill based on my vast experience
with natural supplements. I call this new diet pill Diet Rx. I cannot claim that
this is the best diet pill on the market since it is impossible to do a study
that compares the thousands of products available to the consumer. All I can say
is that the few dozens of people who tried this formula before it was introduced
to the market were very satisfied.
Side effects of diet pills -
potential danger
Even natural diet pills have side effects. The most common side effects include
increase in body temperature, increase in heart rate, headache, restlessness,
and anxiety. Different herbs will have different side effects, but this is a
generalized overview. The danger of diet pills is that some people want to lose
weight quickly and will take more than the recommended dosage as written on the
label. One danger is irregular heart rhythm which can lead to an emergency room
visit.
Diet pill review
As I mentioned above, I am frequently asked to offer my opinion or review of
diet pills that are available to the public. Firstly, I prefer not to use
prescription diet pills since they have many side effects. As to the over the
counter and natural diet pills, there are thousands of them sold in health food
stores, chain stores, grocery stores, and pharmacies. You can also find
thousands of these diet pills online. If you search online for the keywords '
diet pill ' or ' weigh loss pill ' or ' appetite suppressant, ' hundreds of ads
will appear and countless pages of products. How do you know when you are
searching for an online diet pill that it is safe and effective? There is no
easy way to tell. You can partly rely on the reputation of the company, but that
does not always help. Testimonials won't help either because most of the time
testimonials are made up by the company's marketing department, or they won't
include experiences of customers for whom the product did not work.
FDA approved prescription diet pill products
There are several popular FDA approved prescription diet pills. These include
Phentermine, Xenical, and Meridia. Prescription diet pills, when used together
with a healthy diet and daily exercise, can reduce weight in obese people.
However, most prescription diet pills have side effects, sometimes severe side
effects. In the 1960s and 1970s, prescription diet pills were mostly amphetamine
derivatives. In 1973, fenfluramine (Pondimin) became available, followed by
dexfenfluramine (Redux) in 1996. The prescription diet drug Phentermine became
available in 1997. Orlistat (Xenical) was approved in 1999. Sibutramine (Meridia)
was approved by the FDA in 2001. It is difficult to say which one is the best prescription diet pill
since there are individual preferences.
The obesity drug rimonabant does not lower the risk of
heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems when compared to a placebo.
Top ingredients normally
found in over the counter diet pill products
Green tea (Camellia sinensis), hoodia, chromium picolinate, (ginger root
[Zingiber officinale], guarana [Paullinia cupana], hydroxycitric acid [Garcinia
cambogia], white willow [Salix alba], Siberian ginseng [Eleutherococcus
senticosus], cayenne [Capsicum annuum], and bitter orange / zhi shi [Citrus
aurantium]).
questions
Q. Is there such a thing as a safe diet pill?
A. There is no perfectly safe diet pill. Each herb or supplement
will have side effects if misused or too high a dosage is taken. However, as a
rule, natural diet pills are much safer than prescription diet pills.
What are your thoughts on
acai berry extract product that
is heavily advertised?
I have not seen any convincing research on acai berry extract
as an effective product for such purposes.
Q. Can a person with diabetes take a diet pill?
A. A diabetes diet pill preference should be a natural option
rather than a prescription diet pill since the natural diet pills are safer.
However, you should have approval by your health care provider even if you take
an herbal diet pill.
Q. How can I be sure that a diet pill really works before I fork out my hard
earned dollars?
A. There is no easy way to tell which diet pill will work for you
unless you try it.
Q. Could a diet pill for a woman be also effective as a
diet pill for a man?
A. I don't see any major gender differences in diet pills when it
comes to a woman or a man. The required dosage for women would be less than in
men.
Q. In your opinion, what is the top diet pill for fast weight loss?
A. Since there are thousands of over the counter diet pills, it is
impossible to say which one is the top diet pill for fast weight loss unless
extensive comparison studies are done which are not likely anytime soon. I
personally prefer a caffeine free diet pill.
Q. Is banaba a good herbal diet pill?
A. Banaba is mostly used by those interested in helping with blood
sugar control, however a few people have mentioned that it could be a mild
herbal diet pill. I have not seen any actual research regarding banaba and
weight control.
Q. Where can I find a cheap diet pill? I intend to buy diet pill online.
A. You can search online for a cheap diet pill, but it would be
difficult to predict whether it would work for you.
Q. What is your opinion of ephedrine diet pill to control appetite?
A. Ephedra herb, which contains ephedrine, is no longer allowed
over the counter. I think ephedrine diet pills are safe when used in low
dosages, but there are many other herbs available as appetite suppressants that
are much safer and quite effective. Therefore, it is no major loss that ephedra
is no longer available over the counter although much more dangerous substances
can still be purchased without a prescription, for instance aspirin or
acetaminophen. Therefore, I don't see why ephedra was pulled off the market and
other dangerous drugs that kill thousands of Americans each year are still
easily purchased by consumers.
Q. Have you done a diet pill rating?
A. Since there are thousands of non prescription diet pills, it is
impossible to evaluate them all and do such a diet pill rating. Plus, the
formulas could change as manufacturers try to improve their products.
I find the
most effective product for me is green tea extract, I have tried different
brands of hoodia and some work well, others don't.
I used to think the
best over the counter diet pill were the ones with ephedrine type chemicals, but
now I have experience with green tea and hoodia and like them a lot more and I
think they are
effective diet pills.
I find Diet Rx to be the
best weight loss diet pill and it works without giving the jitters.
I have been dealing with depression for a long time
on and off. I did not know what was wrong with me until last august 2007. I had
an emotional break down at the grocery store of all places! I was having serious
crying spells and alot of other depression symptoms. I have been an emotional
eater since teenage yrs. as well. I continued to eat myself into this vicious
cycle of overeating and needing that feeling of fullness to make things 'seem'
better? Chocolate was the best for this. Any kind of junk with chocolate did for
me, for about 20 minutes. So soon I was up to 220 pounds. This last yr. I have
gained 20 pds. So I came across SUPER SLIM POMEGRANATE diet pill from China. I
am sure you know about all the untested diet pills that are so popular. Well my
friend told me that she lost 42 pds. in 2 months and she had no desire to
eat while using SUPER SLIM POMEGRANATE diet pill. That was what I was looking
for! No desire to eat. I bought the diet pills because they were so cheap.
Started taking them, and realized 'all natural' wasn't that at all. The SUPER
SLIM POMEGRANATE diet pill side effects were cotton mouth like crazy!
Sweating even if I was washing dishes, feeling like I could out run a horse,
about 4-5 hours of sleep at night-wide awake. if I ate fast food it went right
through me. Bowel movements started getting scarce, up till I was so bound up I
was miserable. BUT - with all that, food wasn't my main focus anymore and I felt
free. That was huge for me to be able to live like a regular person and not have
it control my life. So I have put up with all those SUPER SLIM POMEGRANATE diet
pill side effects. On top of having depression. I have never went to the doctor
because I was afraid that I would have to take a pill for the rest of my life to
be normal. I know it sounds crazy, because I will consider taking a diet pill
without knowing what is in it. Desperate for a solution I guess. There is even a
forum that we all post our progress and bad and good side effects. So I came
across your web site. And have read a few things. I am interested in the diet
pills for the appetite suppressant. I feel like if I can control the eating I
would be better? But then I am thinking it is my depression that is making me
over eat. I just want something that will help me deal with my overeating. If
these Asian diet pills weren't 'bad' for your health they would be great. So
this is where I am at. I know you can't offer advice- but I am looking and
seeking something better for health as to the Asian diet pill. I did lose 18
pounds. in my first month. But it sucked the water off my bottom like a sponge.
It is possible to find diet pills with much fever side effects
that are still effective.