Slimming pills - Weight Loss Isn't Always Easy

My doctor offered me an easy, doctor assisted weight loss plan just over a year ago. It worked some, but I never reached my goal, and I doubt I will on this program. Here is my story.

Before the slimming pills:

I like every other overweight person on the earth have been struggling with my weight for years. Lose 5 pounds, gain 10. You know the story. I personally have been told time and time again that I needed to take drastic measures. You see, all of the women in my family have died of cancer (with one remaining Aunt suffering from it now, and I too run the risk if I continue to carry around excess fat, which carries excess toxins. I even discussed gastric bypass with my husband, but decided we would ask the doctor for other options. Because I do not look morbidly obese (but the scale tells a different story), she suggested slimming pills instead.

Slimming pills prescribed by my doctor:

This last diet in particular involved the use of weight loss pills. Tenuate and Glucophage.

Tenuate is an appetite suppressant used along with diet, exercise, and behavior therapy for the short-term management of obesity. Side effects that may go away during treatment include restlessness, nervousness, difficulty sleeping, or dry mouth.

Glucophage also known as (metformin) is used as a treatment in type 2 diabetes. It improves glucose tolerance in patients and lowers plasma glucose. Glucophage is also used to treat Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (another problem that has been plaguing me for years and is know to cause weight gain). While it also can cause a person to lose weight, a person who actually has type 2 diabetes will lose weight on this medication. The worst side effect that I have experienced is digestive problems and diarrhea.

I was originally put on these weight loss drugs and lost 40 pounds quickly and easily. The only problem with that is you need to be very overweight to use these drugs, and I, personally, had 100 pounds to lose. After taking these drugs for 6 months, my prescription was changed to phentermine alone.

Phentermine when used with diet and exercise can help you lose weight by decreasing your appetite. It can cause upset stomach, increased blood pressure, and insomnia to name a few. For me it did not work at all.

The struggle with the slimming pills begin:

After 7 months on and off Phentermine, in an effort to fool my body into thinking that it was just starting these drugs, I have gained back 10 of the 40 pounds lost, and my doctor has recently put me back on Tenuate and raised my Glucophage prescription to 2000 MG per day.

Needless to say, this stronger combination of weight loss drugs makes me feel awful and my scale is not moving.

My verdict on slimming pills:

I have concluded that there is not such thing as easy weight loss, even when the doctor promises. Of course, someone who is 30 pounds overweight can manage to get it off, but what about people who are more.

My only consolation is that I am well built, and am my weight is commonly underestimated by 30 pounds. If it weren’t so sad, it would be funny to watch the look on the doctors faces as they push the scale balance over a little at a time and say, funny, you don’t look this heavy. Oh but I am.

Now that I have finally faced the fact that I will not lose my excess weight easily, I have to resolve to lose the rest through diet (I hate that word) and exercise… the hard way.

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TrimSpa in trouble after Smith's death

Marketing experts say TrimSpa's close association with its spokeswoman could spell disaster for the business.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The death of sassy spokeswoman Anna Nicole Smith coupled with growing doubts about TrimSpa's controversial slimming products may prove too much for the closely held company, marketing experts said Thursday.

"Given the double whammy of who their spokesperson was and the other tangential difficulties, I don't think they're going to come back," said Robert Passikoff, a New York brand consultant.
Anna Nicole Smith had been a spokeswoman for TrimSpa since 2003.

Passikoff said news that Smith died in Florida Thursday could spell disaster for the small business.

In fact, TrimSpa had suffered from sinking sales figures for the past three years. Right after Smith came on board, TrimSpa sales ballooned 172 percent to $43 million in 2004 from close to $16 million in the year earlier.

But by 2006, sales had shrunk to $19.5 million, according to Information Resources, Inc., a data-tracking firm.

A spokeswoman for TrimSpa said the company did not know if Smith was taking the slimming pill, which does not require a prescription, at the time of her death.

Authorities said they retrieved a "large amount" of prescription medicine from Smith's hotel room, according to CNN.

"The company was in trouble with or without Anna Nicole," said a source familiar with the company.

"When you mention TrimSpa, the image that came to mind was Anna Nicole Smith and that's the difficulty with being so closely tied to a celebrity," Passikoff said.

"You've just pulled the rug out from under what the brand was standing on," he added.

The former Playboy Playmate and reality TV star became a spokeswoman for TrimSpa in October 2003, after losing a reported 60 to 70 pounds.

But Smith and TrimSpa have faced repeated legal difficulties over allegations that advertisements for the slimming pills were misleading.

"It's a matter of making reasonable and moderate claims that are backed by real substantiation," said Ralph Fucetola, former lawyer for the company.

Last month, the Federal Trade Commission said it fined the marketer of TrimSpa and other over-the-counter slimming drugmakers $25 million for false advertising.

The government agency said that the company's weight control claims were not supported by scientific evidence.

"While TrimSpa disagreed with the FTC it made a business decision by consenting to a $1.5 million payment in order to end the FTC's over two-year investigation," a spokeswoman for TrimSpa told CNNMoney Friday.

The company still contends that its slimming pill, along with diet and exercise, can yield successful results.

"TrimSpa has some major challenges given the loss of credibility about their product and [now] losing their spokesperson," said Britt Beemer, the chairman of strategic marketing firm America's Research Group.

"It's a one-two punch and it does damage their marketing position dramatically."
TrimSpa, which is owned by privately held Goen Technologies, is based in Cedar Knolls, N.J.
TrimSpa founder Alex Goen expressed regret at Smith's death.

"Today, Anna Nicole Smith's grief-stricken and tumultuous personal life came to an end. Anna came to our company as a customer, but she departs it as a friend," Goen said in a brief statement.

"While life for Anna Nicole was not easy these past few months, she held dear her husband, Howard K. Stern, her daughter, Dannielynn Hope, her most cherished friends, beloved dogs, and finally, her work with TrimSpa," he said.

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Acomplia slimming pill info

What is obesity? Obesity is a state when you take in more calories than the calories burnt. It affects your body metabolism and results in the dissolution of fat in your body. Obesity comes with many other health-related problems like irregular blood pressure, pain in joints, and many more.

It is for sure that losing weight is not an easy task. It is the demand of recent times to lose excess body weight at the earliest. Everyone strives hard not just to wipe out their excess body weight, but also to stay healthy.

Though exercise is the best remedy for dissolving extra fat of your body, it is seen that only few of us are able to avail the benefits of exercise. It can be due to many reasons like inability to exercise, laziness, medical condition, and hectic schedules. Subsequently, slimming pills therapy comes in to action by providing an easier method to shelve excess body weight. Acomplia slimming pill is like a boon for those people who don’t want to spend most of their time in exercises.

Acomplia slimming pill is an innovative way to remove extra pounds from your body. Acomplia work effectively by suppressing your appetite. You can lose your excess weight when you take these slimming pills in combination with mild exercises and a balanced diet.

If you want to lose weight, it is important that you should set some goals. You can’t lose weight significantly without goals. Slimming pills play an important role in suppressing your appetite and in stimulating the metabolism of your body.

Acomplia should be taken before meals and with a glass full of water. Also, prior consultation should be taken before your go for slimming pills therapy. It is to be noted that these slimming pills should not be overdosed, as overdose of these pills may affect your health in an adverse manner. Few of the sober side effects of these slimming pills are dizziness, insomnia, constipation, upset mouth, and dry mouth. These side effects will disappear within a few hours.

Acomplia plays an important role in losing weight more rapidly. Acomplia Slimming pill is useful for all whether they are indulged in exercises or not.

Charles Larsen is a physician by profession but he is also writing articles on Weight loss drugs for a long time. To know more about weight loss medicine, Acomplia slimming pill, acomplia, Acomplia rimonabant, buy acomplia, acomplia slimming pills visit http://www.acomplia.p5.org.uk/

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Fake slimming pills - Xenadrine EFX

Consumers who bought Xenadrine EFX slimming pills expecting to lose weight will get refunds of up to $30, the Federal Trade Commission said Monday.

The government isn't requiring you to prove that you bought the pills.

You do have to sign and mail a form swearing, under penalty of perjury, that you bought Xenadrine EFX between Feb. 1, 2002, and May 22, 2006, and were not satisfied with it.

Promoters of the slimming pill advertised heavily on TV and in People, TV Guide, Men's Fitness and other publications. The ads claimed the slimming pills caused rapid and substantial weight and fat loss, without dieting or exercise.

Some customers claimed to have lost more than 100 pounds. The FTC says they were paid up to $20,000 for their testimonials.

According to the FTC, promoter Robert Chinery Jr. commissioned several studies of the slimming pills, none of which showed substantial weight loss. One study showed an average loss of 1.5 pounds over 10 weeks, while those who took placebos lost an average of 2.5 pounds.

A 120-tablet bottle — a one-month supply — sold for about $40. Sales topped $160 million.

The amount of refund per consumer depends upon how many others apply. Depending upon the number, the promoters will pay between $8 million and $12.8 million to settle the FTC's complaint.

The settlement bars the promoters from making any health claims not substantiated by scientific evidence.

Download the claim form at http://www.xenadrineefxsettlement.com/ or call 1-800-560-6435. The deadline is Sept. 15.

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What about Alli side effects?

How badly do you want to be skinny? Is it worth soiling your underwear?

Those questions will likely confront users of the new Alli, the first over-the-counter slimming pill approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Its marketing effort makes an impression by telling users to wear dark pants and carry extra clothes in case they soil themselves.

"Well, that sounds attractive, doesn't it?" Jay Leno cracked June 25 on "The Tonight Show." "You lost a couple of pounds, and you're on a date with that special girl. 'Excuse me while I change my pants. "

NBC's Conan O'Brien also spoke up to pooh-pooh Alli, suggesting that "the drug comes in three forms: pills, capsules and chimichangas."

The slimming pill's backers say that the embarrassment is exaggerated and that the effects can be managed by a low-fat diet.

Only half of all users had "fecal urgency" or related effects in clinical trials, and just 5 percent quit for those reasons, said Vidhu Bansal, director of medical affairs for GlaxoSmithKline's consumer health division.

"They actually served as a positive feedback tool," she said. "It reminded them that they cheated on their diet."

Caroline Apovian, a Boston physician who wrote "The Alli Diet Plan," which shows how to minimize problems by eating low-fat foods, said she did not understand the shame people might feel over losing bowel control. "It's also embarrassing to be obese," said Apovian, who was a paid consultant to GlaxoSmithKline in getting Alli approved for over-the-counter sales. "It's embarrassing to be dead."

GlaxoSmithKline executives are pitching Alli as part of a lifestyle change, which includes a commitment to eat better and exercise more. Users can log in their progress on the slimming pill's Web site www.myalli.com and interact with other customers or ask questions of a pharmacist, a nutritionist, a chef and a fitness specialist.

The firm, with a U.S. headquarters in Philadelphia, paid $100 million to Xenical's maker, Roche, for the rights to sell Alli over the counter. GlaxoSmithKline is spending an additional $150 million in a marketing campaign that includes a 60-second television ad and print ads appearing this month in most major magazines, read by 33 million people.

Bill Trombetta, professor of pharmaceutical marketing at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia, said the comedians' attention has an initial upside. "They got your attention. This is on everyone's lips," he said. "You can't buy this kind of publicity."

But will the exposure move people to try it?

Maybe at first, said Kelly Brownell, who directs the Yale Center for Eating and Weight Disorders. But he predicts "sales will tail off fairly quickly."

"The people who will try it won't lose much weight and won't provide very good word-of-mouth," he said.

"Both the benefits and the side effects are overstated," Brownell added. "It's not going to hurt many people, and it's not going to help many people."

Marion Nestle, a nutrition professor at New York University and a frequent critic of the food industry, noted that many users may replace fat calories by eating more carbohydrates. "A lot of Alli takers will do that and wonder why they aren't losing weight," she wrote in an e-mail.

The early results are sketchy.

In the California beach town of Santa Monica, a Los Angeles Times reporter found that Alli bottles were flying off store shelves.

But in Philadelphia, once dubbed the nation's fattest city, Alli's arrival appeared to be less of a sensation.

"We do have it in stock. No one has inquired about it," pharmacist Maria Taylor at Narberth Pharmacy, said last week, echoing several other Philadelphia-area pharmacists. "Maybe it should come with a coupon for Depends," the adult diaper.

Alli contains 60 milligrams of orlistat - half the amount found in prescription Xenical. The over-the-counter version is taken three times a day with meals and costs from $60 to $67 for a month's supply. A year's worth costs at least $720.

The prescription drug's U.S. sales have been fading, from $135 million in 2002 to $93 million last year.

Despite the fact that obesity rates are surging, an effective slimming pill remains elusive. "Eating is so fundamental for human existence that the body has multiple redundant systems," said Gary D. Foster, who directs Temple University's Center for Obesity Research and Education and was a consultant to GlaxoSmithKline for its Alli Web site. "So if you block one pathway, it's evolutionarily smart to have a backup."

Alli works by blocking the digestive enzyme lipase, which aids in fat absorption. The firm estimates that Alli blocks about 25 percent of the fat that reaches the gut.

But too much fat can cause oily discharges. "You may recognize it as something that looks like the oil on top of a pizza," an Alli brochure says cheerily.

That is what happened to Paula Miguel, 35, of Hopatcong, N.J. She was one of 400 people picked by the drug firm to receive a six-month supply of Alli for free.

She said it was hardest the first week to establish her routine to walk more and eat better.

She felt a strong urge to go after downing some greasy crab cakes at a friend's house. "When I went to the bathroom, it was orangey, like an oil," she said.

But, she said, that happened only once since she began April 18. Overall, she said, she has lost 23 pounds, falling to 170 pounds on her 5-foot-3 frame. "It's not as bad as they say," said Miguel. "I eat better ... I'm more active. For me, it works fine."

The company said users could expect to lose an average of 10 pounds in a year. But that's high, independent experts say. The more potent prescription version helped participants lose an average of 6.3 pounds by the end of a year, according to researchers who analyzed 50 studies for a 2005 article in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Paul Woolf, chairman of the department of medicine at Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Chester, Pa., was on the FDA advisory committee that in 2006 recommended that Alli be freed from prescription status.

He called Alli "a real niche product" that causes modest weight loss.

"No one is going to abuse it," he said. "They're going to be very unhappy if they do."

Via South Bend Tribune

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Do best slimming pills exist?

Which slimming pills are the best? If you are overweight and want to become slimmer, you have definitely asked that question already. As people all around the world want to reach better shape, best slimming pills are always sought after.

We all know that a sure way to become slim is eating healthy meals and do a lot of physical activity. Slimming pills may do well in a short cut, but we have to understand how they act and what effect they are going to show.

The great variety of slimming pills is basically into two groups – prescription drugs and over the counter diet pills. Which are the best pills?

Prescription pills – moderate efficacy with strong side effects

Prescription slimming pills are clinically tested and proven to work as they claim. Let’s take Xenical – it claims to block up to 25% of fats from being absorbed by our intestines. Its action has been proved clinically so we know what we can expect.

But prescription drugs are not the best choice due to strong side effects and unnatural chemicals we have to intake into our body while taking drugs. Xenical is also clinically proven to cause oily spotting, nausea and much more…

Natural slimming pills – do they work as claimed?

The problem with natural slimming pills is that they often don’t back their claims by medical studies. You can see promises of fantastic weight loss results like “eat what you want and still lose weight” or “the weight remains permanent” and the like…

Actually you cannot be sure if you get original mix of components or some king of useless placebo in a beautiful package. Fortunately, there are natural slimming pills that passed clinical tests proving their weight loss efficacy, based on using scientifically researched components. Perfect example is Proactol that is clinically proved to lower excess weight by binding up to 27 of dietary fats before digestion.

Anohter point of concern is so called herbal components. As you know, natural is not always safe, and there are slimming pills based exactly on potentially dangerous ingredients. Ephedra or ma huang are still remain popular fat burners, despite FDA banned them in 2003 after several death cases resulted from using ephedra.

Still, in the late years we can see the appearing of new natural slimming pills, made of safe components mixed for maximum weight loss impact. You do not need prescription to use them and if you do eat healthily and make some physical activity, you will benefit from adding slimming pills to your weight loss program.

Conclusion

If saying of best slimming pills – there is no ultimate answer. Both prescription and natural slimming pills can be your best choice depending on different factors.

If you suffer from obesity that potentially puts your health at risk and you have serious medical conditions, your best choice is prescription drugs under doctor’s control.

If you are overweight and wish to shed excess pounds than probably the best slimming pills are respectful natural slimming pills that are clinically proven and medically tested.

Undoubted leader among natural slimming pills in 2007 is Proactol - acknowledged by health professionals and customers as good and safe slimming pill. Since February 2007 thousands of people use it successfully along with good nutrition and exercising and achieve great weight loss. Daily Express UK even featured weight loss success with using Proactol where young woman want from 95 to 62 kg for several months.

Slimming pills are very popular – whatever being said of them, slimming pills do really help people lose weight and now more and more effective solutions hit on the market. Well, there may never be ideal slimming pill, but if you really want to achieve your dreams of better and healthier body – you will achieve it!

Alli clinical studies showed moderate weight loss efficacy

Orlistat, known by the brand name Alli, works by decreasing the amount of fat absorbed by the body. It is the OTC version of Xenical, a prescription weight loss pill. The good news: Orlistat has been tested and the prescription version has been used since 1999.

Last fall Dr. James Anderson, head of the UK College of Medicine Metabolic Research Group, and his colleagues examined the effects of OTC strength (60 mg) orlistat on mildly to moderately overweight individuals. The study was the first of its kind. Previously, the slimming pill's effects had only been studied in obese individuals. Study participants took either orlistat or a placebo three times daily with meals for 16 weeks. Results of that study showed those taking OTC-strength orlistat did lose more weight than those taking the placebo.

"Our research showed that people taking orlistat and following low-fat diets lost almost five percent of their initial body weight, about seven to15 pounds, over four months," Anderson said. "While two to four pounds a month isn't dramatic, steady weight loss of this amount can have major health benefits. For example, the reduction in LDL-cholesterol, the bad-guy cholesterol, of 10 percent can reduce risk of heart attack by 20 percent."

Any successful dieter knows that long-term weight loss is about lifestyle changes not quick fixes. While taking Alli slimming pill may help you lose weight, it won't do all of the work for you. Anderson stresses a healthy diet and exercise plan are absolutely necessary to lose the weight and keep it off.

"This is the first over-the-counter slimming pill that has proven effectiveness. It is my hope that people will take one capsule before each regular meal, breakfast, lunch, and supper, and alter their fat and calorie intake," Anderson said. "If they commit to exercise six days a week, most people can lose weight steadily. All of us are in this for the long haul and need to keep up healthy behaviors, not for days or weeks, but for months and years. Doing regular physical activity and making good food choices will help us be trimmer and give us more energy."

Read also Best weight loss pills

Herbal phentermine, Hoodia and Ephedra slimming pills exposed

If you like to help your weight loss with some kind of slimming pills, you can find them almost in every medical store. The question is – are the slimming pills you are going to buy the genuine and suitable for you? Not every slimming pill is created equal in terms of effectiveness. Let’s make a quick survey into very widespread types of slimming pills - Brazilian slimming pills, Phentermine 37.5 mg slimming pills, and those containing Ephedra and Hoodia, and its effectiveness and other aspects, both positive and negative.

No prescription Phentermine-as the term suggests-can be used without any prescription. Such drugs contain green tea or caffeine (the former type is more these days), which suppresses the appetite and increases the basal metabolism thereby burning away those extra fat. Earlier, no prescription drugs used Ephedra, but it was banned by FDA in 2003 citing health consequence. Even though the ban stands annulled as in 2006, its accepted levels are very much limited according to the new guidelines laid down by the FDA.

Brazilian slimming pills, when hit the markets few years back, created a quite lot of stir amongst the public and the media alike. It produced quick results and the Brazilian slimming pills were cheaper as well. But, of late, researches have showed that some chemicals used in Brazilian slimming pills are injurious to human body. Most of the samples tested by authorities found to include higher concentrations of amphetamines and certain natural extracts that mimics the negative effects of Ephedra or Ephedra based slimming pills. Therefore, from a customer point of view, it would be wise to abstain from using Brazilian slimming pills.

Hoodia based drugs, on the other hand, works in the same way to that of no prescription slimming pills, by suppressing the natural appetite for food. Even though some websites say Hoodia based slimming pills are free from any side effects, recent studies have exposed that the chemical-steroidal glycosides in Hoodia-badly affects nerve cells in the hypothalamus, which controls blood glucose levels.

As you see, there’s no and probably will never be a perfect slimming solution. If you believe that prescription slimming pills is the best choice – make sure you don’t have medical restrictions to take them as most of prescription pills tend to have side effects.

If your decision is natural slimming pills – take care to see the pills you are buying is a genuine and safe product. Weight loss is beneficial to your health so it makes no sense to risk it.

Alli slimming pill hits stores - experts warn of side effects, misuse

For two years, George Hegedus has avoided expensive diet plans and made it to the gym barely three times a week. At 270 pounds, the Coconut Creek, Fla., resident said he needs something to help combat the fat calories.

So when alli, the first federally approved over-the-counter slimming pill, hit South Florida drugstore shelves Thursday, he drove to a Walgreens store on his lunch hour and bought a starter pack: 90 pills at $59.99.

"I hope it helps take calories off, but it's not a magic pill," said Hegedus, 42, a structural engineer.

South Florida drugstores reported growing consumer interest in the new slimming pill, which is being rolled out nationwide this week with an unprecedented $150 million marketing campaign. Although the drug has been available at greater strength by prescription since 1999, this is the first time it is available over the counter to overweight adults.

The pill works by blocking about 25 percent of the body's absorption of fat in the digestive system by attaching to natural enzymes that would otherwise break down fat.

Alli's London-based manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, recommends taking it along with a low-fat diet and exercise. Consumers who don't stick to a low-fat diet can experience some unpleasant side effects, such as oily discharge, diarrhea and gas.

The Food and Drug Administration approved the pill in February, at half the strength of its prescription version, sold under the name Xenical. GlaxoSmithKline is promoting the pill with books, a TV commercial and educational CDs.

Drugstore representatives said many consumers were putting in pre-orders for the drug before it hit the shelves Thursday.

"We've been getting a lot of calls and we've taken a number of pre-orders through the Web site," said Carol Hively, a spokeswoman for Walgreens. "We expect this to be a big product."
But dieticians and pharmacists say that, despite the buzz, it does not change the classic formula for weight loss: eating less and moving more.

Jan Schuman, a pharmacist at Boca Pharmacy, said the key to losing weight is behavior modification.

"I'm on a diet now. I'm exercising and can do without alli," Schuman said. "I don't eat that much fat."

Schuman said taking alli and having a high calorie intake is like diabetics eating sugary foods and injecting more insulin into their bodies. He urges people not to "play a game" with themselves by thinking the pill will solve their problem, and instead focus on a good diet and exercise.

GlaxoSmithKline mailed fliers and educational material to drugstores, but Schuman said he has not heard from the company on counseling those who buy alli.

Via SunHerald.com

Actually alli is half strengh of Xenical slimming pill which is well known and proved efficacy although many people noticed side effects. Alli does have the same side effects like Xenical.

Here they are:

• loose stools
• too-frequent stools
• uncontrollable bowel movements
• gas with an oily discharge

Natural fat binder Proactol showed approximately the same efficacy in blocking fats like alli, except for no side effects noticed from testers who took it.

People using Proactol since February 2007 (the month it's become available for public) also noticed no side effects and increased weight loss rate as compared to routines without taking Proactol.

It seems natural because Proactol active ingredient is based on Opuntia Ficus Indica fiber, known for thousands of years for it's strong binding capacities. Scientific researches by Bio Serae Laboratories discovered great fat binding power of Neopuntia (made from the fiber) and several clinical studies proved that it can be used for safe weight loss.

So make your choice towards natural and safe weight loss aid and please remember that if other people reach weight loss success it's available for you too!

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Diabetics can lose weight with combination approach

People with type 2 diabetes who are trying to lose weight seem to do well with a calorie-controlled diet and the slimming pill Meridia, according to a new study.

Dr. J. Bruce Redmon and colleagues from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, examined the effects of combining several weight loss strategies in a study involving 59 overweight or obese subjects with type 2 diabetes.

The participants were randomized to the combination approach for 2 years, or to a standard weight loss program for 1 year followed by the combination therapy weight loss program for 1 year (control group)

The people in the standard weight loss programs were prescribed individualized diets and an exercise program. The combination approach featured daily Meridia (generic name, sibutramine) and use of meal replacement products (Slim Fast) to lower calorie intake, including a low-calorie-diet week every two months when only meal replacement products were allowed.

A total of 48 patients completed the study, including 23 in the combination group and 25 in the control group. The results are published in the medical journal Diabetes Care.

After 2 years, subjects in the combination group had lost an average of 4.6 kilograms, or 10 pounds. They also showed significant decreases in long-term blood glucose levels, fat mass, lean body mass, and blood pressure.

Little weight loss occurred the control group in the first year of standard therapy. But by the end of the second year, after switching to the combination strategy, reductions in blood glucose and weight were similar to those seen in the other group.

The combination strategy was "simple and easy for subjects to understand and implement," the investigators note, at a cost of about $6 per day.

"Our data suggest that weight loss at 2 years of 4-5 kg (about 4 percent of initial body weight) for people with type 2 diabetes can produce improvement in diabetes that are likely to be clinically significant," Redmon's team concludes.

via http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.shtml?181383

Rimonabant Slimming Pill Causes Physical and Psychological Harm

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should not approve the new slimming pill rimonabant (marketed as Acomplia in Europe and known as Zimulti in the U.S.) because it produces only modest weight loss and has been shown to produce serious physical and psychological adverse effects, according to Public Citizen testimony before an FDA advisory committee meeting today. The group argued that more extensive studies of the drug’s effectiveness and safety are needed to fully evaluate its benefit-to-risk ratio.

The testimony about rimonabant was prepared by Dr. Sidney Wolfe, Ben Wolpaw and Elizabeth Barbehenn, Ph.D., all of the Health Research Group at Public Citizen. Wolfe delivered the testimony to the FDA’s endocrine metabolic drugs advisory committee.

Rimonabant inhibits brain receptors involved in eating. But the drug also inhibits other areas of the brain and other organs, raising serious concerns about the drug’s toxicity.

Sanofi-Aventis, the maker of rimonabant, has claimed that in pre-clinical animal studies, the drug “was shown to have very limited potential to induce toxicity,” and that there was no specific organ pathology identified. Yet a report from the European drug regulatory authority acknowledges such adverse effects in animals as increased birth defects, impaired fetal survival, convulsions, liver toxicity, chromosomal aberrations and carcinomas.

“The elusive idea of a magic bullet drug that has a benefit mediated through its action on one receptor site, yet is devoid of risks at a myriad of other sites in the body, is once again exemplified by rimonabant,” said Wolfe. “Other such drugs – including Vioxx, Rezulin and Redux – were eventually removed from the market because of their toxicity.”

Because the receptors are widespread in the brain, rimonabant has been shown to cause extraordinarily broad kinds of psychiatric dysfunction, in addition to increased suicidal tendencies and other depressive symptoms. In clinical studies, patients given 20 milligrams of rimonabant showed significant increases in anxiety, insomnia and panic attacks, as well as increases in aggression and agitation compared to patients given a placebo. In addition, significantly more patients receiving rimonabant required a sedative, tranquilizer or an anti-depressant for adverse events caused by the drug.

“The evidence for increased suicidal tendencies and depression is of particular concern for a drug targeted toward the obese, a population that has been shown to have a significantly higher incidence of depression and eating disorders compared to non-obese individuals,” Wolfe testified.

Wolfe told the committee that another major issue with the drug is the lack of reliable information regarding the long-term effects of its use. Because patients regain weight lost while using rimonabant after they discontinue its use, the drug will have to be prescribed on a long-term basis to be effective. But of the studies performed to date, two lasted two years, while the other three were one year in length.

“Because rimonabant is the first drug of its class, there is no data on its use in humans over an extended period of time,” said Wolfe. “The complete lack of information about the long-term effects of this drug is a serious cause of concern.”

Via http://www.citizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=2453

Can slimming pills be harmful for your health?

Slimming pills marketers will promise you anything and everything if you just buy one bottle. You can lose 3 pounds a day or maybe 20 or even 30 pounds a week. But can they deliver what they promise? And is it safe?

Most prescription slimming pills suppress the appetite, which causes you to consume fewer calories. On the surface, this seems like the ultimate solution for losing weight. However, as you reduce your caloric intake, your metabolism also slows down. As your metabolism slows down, you lose less and less weight. This is why it is common for people to lose only a certain amount of weight while taking slimming pills alone.

As fat blockers like Orlistat (Xenical) remove excess fats via the intestines, they may cause a wide range of unwanted symptoms. One of the dangers of slimming pills that inhibit the absorption of fats is the problem of gastrointestinal side effects, such as oily spotting, flatus with discharge, fecal urgency, fatty/oily stool, oily evacuation, increased defecation, and fecal incontinence. Other gastrointestinal diet pill side effects may include: abdominal pain, nausea, infectious diarrhea, and rectal pain.

Slimming pills that inhibit the absorption of fats can also cause a deficiency in vitamins A, D, E, K, and Beta-carotenes. Also, rare side effects have been hypersensitivity with symptoms of pruritus, rash, urticaria, angioedema, and anaphylaxis. Sounds bad? You bet it does.

Sibutramine (Meridia) and other similar appetite suppressants stimulate the sympathetic nervous system, which can raise blood pressure and heart rate. This increases the risk of heart attack and cardiac arrest, especially among people who already suffered from high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat or heart disease. In fact, between February 1998 and March 2003, the FDA received reports of 49 deaths related to Sibutramine. Additional minor side effects include constipation, headache, dry mouth and insomnia (because the chemicals in these drugs also influence sleep patterns).

Another popular slimming pill ingredient in the '90s was a powerful amphetamine-like stimulant called ephedra (or the Chinese herb ma huang), which, in combination with caffeine, triggered measurable weight loss. The problem was that ephedra also increased the heart rate, and, consequently, the risk of heart attack and stroke. Ephedra is related to epinephrine (adrenaline), which, during times of stress, constricts blood vessels, elevates heart rate and gets the body ready to fight or flee. At least 155 people died from taking medications containing ephedra.

Some slimming pills, especially the stimulant-based ones, are habit-forming and as such can be abused. Abuse of these drugs may lead to addiction. None of this would ever help you achieve a healthy life and that's the sad truth about miracle pills. So are there any quick fixes, anything that can do to lose weight without too much trouble?

There are a couple of quick fixes you can try and which may change your life for the better:

- Get a habit of eating breakfast every morning! Breakfast eaters are champions of good health. Research shows people who have a morning meal tend to take in more vitamins and minerals, and less fat and cholesterol. The result is often a leaner body, lower cholesterol count, and less chance of overeating.

- Plan your sessions of exercise. Incidental exercise is good, but in all honesty - it's not enough. People who maintain their weight have learned to schedule dedicated times of exercise. Those times are not torture sessions, but times when they look forward to release stress and positive feelings of well-being after the session.

- Take up a hobby. Since they are relaxing activities, hobbies are usually enjoyable. The joy may help people live healthier and recover better from illness. For one thing, taking part in hobbies can burn calories, more so than just sitting in front of the TV. Relaxed happy people are a lot less likely to eat emotionally than the rest of dieters.

Via http://health-fitness.rvbest.info/

Prescription slimming pills – the only solution?

Until recent times the only medicines in the UK licensed for the treatment of obesity were sibutramine (the most known trademark Meridia) and orlistat (known under trademark Xenical). Orlistat struggles extra weight by reducing the absorption of the fat we consume with meals. Sibutramine suppresses our appetite by increasing the feeling of fullness, which is achieved by boosting serotonin levels, the chemical produced naturally in our body.

These medications have been clinically proven to help reduce excess weight, but they are prescription weight loss pills and can be prescribed by doctors only in case of obesity and resulting health problems, such as increased blood pressure, heart problems and so on. The effect of these medications increases when they are combined with dieting and exercises.

For most of the over-the-counter slimming pills that are sold in the health shops there’s usually little evidence of guaranteed weight loss. Clinical studies may also be held for over-the-counter slimming pills, but the research evidence is usually occasional, as those studies aren’t repeated. Some of over-the-counter slimming pills provide us with insufficient data on components used and the principles of pills’ work.

Slimming pills that promise you fast and steady weight loss without changing your eating habits won’t probably work as they claimed. Eating as we always do and taking slimming pills may hardly bring us satisfactory results, as compared to combining natural weight loss pills and healthy dieting, which is always the shortest way to real weight loss progress. Basically it’s not up to slimming pills itself how much weigh loss progress we are going to make, it’s always the matter of changing the whole our lifestyle.

Some slimming pills are likely to be harmful in case you have certain health conditions or taking other medication. Depending on the components, some slimming pills may interfere with prescribed medication, which is not good for our health also.

In February 2007 brand new slimming pill was released – Proactol fat binder. This is the first natural slimming pill:

1. Licensed for the treatment of obesity and weight management
2. Clinically proven to help people lose weight
3. Research evidence backed by numerous clinical studies
4. Available without prescription
5. Containing safe organic patented components

Visit The Proactol official site now