Weight Loss Drugs & Supplements: Do They Work & How?
April 19 2009
Everyone seems to have questions like do weight loss drugs & supplements work, are they safe, and if so, how do they work. Here is the run down:
Do weight-loss drugs & supplements work?
Before you understand if they work or not, you have to understand the difference between weight loss drugs and weight loss supplements :
Weight Loss Drugs: They can be either prescription or Over the counter drugs. These are approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA). That means, the safety & efficacy of these drugs are proven in clinical studies.
These drugs have shown 5-10% of weight loss (of initial body weight), around 2lb/month with lifestyle medications. Examples are Alli, & Meridia as shown in the picture.
Dietary Supplements: These are not approved by the FDA and hence are not tested in clinical trials. So the safety and efficacy carries a big question mark. Simply put, most don’t work and are not safe.
How do these weight-loss drugs & supplements work?
Suppressing Appetite: Most weight loss drugs work by suppressing the appetite and thereby reducing food intake.
An example is Meridia (sibutramine), which is the only drug approved by FDA for long-term use.
Altering food absorption: These reduce weight by preventing the absorption and digestion of fat in foods.
Alli (Orlistat) which prevents fat absorption is the only over- the-counter drug approved by the FDA to treat obesity .
Increasing Energy expenditure: These drugs (called thermogenics) help by increasing your metabolism or energy expenditure. You can expect 2-3% increase in your metabolism (around 100-150 calories/day).
Ephedrine works via the same mechanism and also by suppressing appetite. FDA hasn’t approved ephedrine as a weight loss drug. Mua Hung – a natural source of Ephedrine- can be found in many dietary supplements.
Conclusions
- Even weight loss drugs work by making you eat less or spending more energy. So don’t think you can eat whatever you want and still magically lose weight by taking weigh loss supplements
- FDA approved Weight loss drugs are proven to work and are safe. Dietary supplements are not.
- Weight loss drugs work best when complimented with lifestyle modifications like diet and exercise.
- Weight loss drugs cannot cure weight problems; get off the drug, and you will gain all the weight back.
