Weight Loss Pills: Are They As Safe As We Think?

Within the diet industry, there are many schools of thought about the best way to lose weight. Should you give your money and time to monitored weight loss programs, boot camp-style intensive sessions, detox diets, or food-based plans. But the most controversial of all of them are weight loss pills.

When weight loss pills first hit the market, they were really nothing more than "speed"—a milder form of methamphetamine that would speed up your metabolism, forcing your body to get rid fat that had been stored up over time. What the public was unaware of was that there were harmful side effects connected with these diet pills, such as high levels of addiction, a racing heartbeat, liver and kidney damage, and, in extreme cases, strokes or heart attacks.

Since then, scientists and nutritionists have learned much more about how the body works, and they have developed safer, more natural weight loss pills. These pills don’t replace a healthy diet plan, but instead work with your weight loss efforts in a variety of ways to help you lose weight.

However, not all of them may be right for you. As always, you should talk to your doctor, pharmacist, or nutritionist to find out if you’d be a good candidate for any particular weight loss pill program. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the top fat loss pills on the market, and see what they’re really about.

7-DFBX

The name is short for "7 Day Fat Burner XTREME" and claims to be able to help you lose between 11 and 17 pounds in seven days. Its claim to fame is its ability to balance the body’s pH level while flushing toxins out of your body. This can be a way to kick start a diet, or push through a weight loss plateau, but it’s not a long-term weight loss solution—and even the company advises strongly against taking more than a 14-day supply at a time. Buyer beware.

Trimspa X32

Made famous by the late Anna Nicole Smith, the original Trimspa had Ephedra in it—a traditional Chinese herb used in China for over 5,000 years. It increases the blood pressure and the heart rate, and it was banned by the FDA in 2004 after several deaths were connected to dietary supplements containing Ephedra. In Trimspa X32, an African herb known Hoodia Gordonii is the active ingredient. The herb is supposed to be an appetite suppressant, but the FDA has not determined this to be fact and no clinical data has been published.

Nuphedragen

This is another controversial weight loss pill. Its active ingredient, phentermine, is rumored to have many of the same fatal side effects as the Chinese herb Ephedra. Nuphedragen also contains prescription-strength pain relievers, which can be addictive and unsafe. To many, this pill’s claim is that it will decrease your appetite, but it sounds more like it will get you high.

Acai Burn

Acai burn takes the best weight loss properties, and nutrients, found in Acai berries and stuffs all of that magic into a pill. Oprah made this the acai berry famous by promoting its nutritional benefits through her marketing machine. Since then it has been used in everything from powders to pills. It claims to boost your energy and flush out toxins, but many believe that the pills don’t quite pack the punch the necessary punch when it comes to nutritional value. There is no doubt within the medical community that the Acai berry is a wonderful thing. But it’s probably best to eat them, rather than take processed pills, masquerading as the real deal.

These are just a few of the literally hundreds of pills on the market. While some may bring about the desired results with very little side effects, nothing beats healthy eating and regular exercise to lose weight and stay fit. This is the only sustainable long term plan in existence.