A client who was just wrapping up the Makkoy Ignition program said to me “Moren, why can’t you use diet pills to lose weight?” All my alarms went off, in my head I thought “OMG! I have FAILED as I lifestyle coach! What went wrong??” In the calmest tone I could muster I responded “Why would you want to do that Hun?”… “Oh no! Not for me! I tried recommending Makkoy to a coworker when she just laughed and pulled out a picture. She had lost over 100 pounds with surgery, gained some back after she had a kid and now she was back on diet pills to lose again. How do I educate her?”
My soul smiled as I could finally breathe. I talked her through it and thought I should probably write a post about this. See, taking pills to lose weight for most people is like popping some hydrocodone for a blister on your palm that came from playing video games! Who does that?
As I started researching some of these pills, I got sad and furious. Getting fit requires effort, commitment and discipline but it is way too simple for you to subject yourself to the rubbish associated with these pills and worse, the unknown side effects that can come in the long run. Below is a brief overview on some of the popular diet pills. Keep in mind that unlike drug manufacturers, the makers of supplements don’t have to show that their products are safe or effective before selling them. So please before you consider any of this, let’s talk!
Lipozene
Made from Glucomannan, a type of fiber that absorbs water and expands in your stomach to make you feel full, so you eat less and lose weight loss goals. $240/month
Side effects:
- Problem with gulping or swallowing- Feel like puking often
- Fluctuation in blood sugar levels: even worse for diabetics
- Severe diarrhea
- Causes changes in blood pressure
Hydroxy cut
- It is a blend of different ingredients including caffeine, lady’s mantle extract, wild olive extract, komijn extract & wild mint extract that apparently cause you to lose weight. Here is what scares me, there is no testing that has been done on humans to show for a fact what it does. There is no explanation how the blends of their 4 main active ingredients actually work; it is just known that people lose weight when they take the pill and their “clinically proven” claim is for tests done on animals. In2009 the FDA warned against using some Hydroxycut products citing reports of a death from liver failure and several instances of serious health problems. Hydroxycut then discontinued those products
Side effects:
- Increased blood pressure
- Headaches, some light-headedness and possible dizziness
- Feeling restless
- Nose bleeds
- Blurred vision
- Acne Outbreaks
Sensa
The sprinkle diet. Sprinkle Sensa on every meal. They said it tricks your brain into thinking you are full early. I have to admit that long ago, I really wondered about this one. I mean just shake it on ANY food and you’re good to go. Well, turns out they got sued and had to return $26 million dollars to consumers because they used bogus clinical studies. Apparently, it just doesn’t work. The sad news? They already made 364 million dollars in sales in 4 years! So guess who really lost *hiss*
Alli
It prevents you from digesting up to 25% of fats consumed by attaching to some of the enzymes in your system responsible for breaking down fat from food. Like literally goes in there and stops the enzymes from working. $54/month
Side effects
- Diarrhea, tendency to experience loose, oily stools since excess fat that is blocked from absorption is quickly excreted.
- In extreme cases you can’t control your bowels and leak all over…GROSSSS!!!
- Risk of vitamin loss- Enough fat is needed in your diet to absorb fat soluble vitamins
Meridia
It acts on the brains appetite control center to make you feel full faster. It does so by altering levels of 2 chemicals that regulate satiety. So goes in there and changes chemical levels to trick your brain into thinking you are full
Side effects:
- Can raise blood pressure
- Risk of heart attack or stroke.
- Was temporarily banned in Italy after 50 adverse reactions
