by Gill Jennings

Created on: April 22, 2009

So, I'm flicking through Helium one day, & I come across this debate: Do weight loss pills work? Six people say yes, they do, and fourteen say no, they don't. Actually it's about to become fifteen, as I add my voice to the "no" side of the debate. And yet on this very page there are no fewer than five adverts for weight loss pills or patches. Hmm. Something's not right here.

Unfortunately we live in a very lazy society, where we are bombarded with get-something-for-nothing messages daily (but have you noticed how expensive the get-something-for-nothing *products* are?)

Why am I adding my negative opinion to this debate? I guess that's probably fairly obvious! Like so many thousands of others out there, I got suckered into trying a lose-weight-fast diet pill. I'm not massively overweight, just struggling to shift the last few pounds of excess baggage that I gained when "middle-aged spread" caught up with me. Through determination, good eating habits and daily walks I managed to rid myself of two-thirds of the extra poundage, but then I hit the dieter's nightmare: the "plateau". No amount, it seemed, of salads & exercise were going to force that flab to budge; everywhere I turned, I was being overwhelmed by claims that I could "lose ten pounds in a week with no effort". I succumbed.

Being a very cautious soul, and one with a limited household budget at my disposal, I proceeded carefully. I researched, reading review after review and blog after blog, before deciding on which product to purchase. This one, it seemed, was reliable and really did get results. Even then I didn't rush to purchase, but scanned the web for the best price. Finally my decision was made, my money parted with, the product ordered.

My pot of pills arrived. I read the instructions, which promised real results: in fact, they seemed to suggest I could easliy lose more wieght than I wanted to, so I decided to start slowly by taking only one pill per day (the instructions said I could take up to three). I continued with my usual sensible diet and regular exercise, the combination of which had got me to my "plateau" and kept me there for a year. After one week, I stepped expectantly on the scales (any serious dieter knows that weighing should occur no more frequently than weekly) and, voila! I had GAINED three pounds. In one week. After having lost fourteen pounds and maintained that loss for a year. Great.

I stopped taking the pills. It took me three weeks to remove those extra pounds. Then (what on earth was I thinking?) I decided to try again. Can you guess what's coming? Yup. One week later, three pounds heavier. I gave up. This time it took FOUR weeks to shift the excess. The pills went in the bin, and I've learned my lesson.

There is NO WAY to lose excess weight other than a sensible eating plan coupled with regular exercise. None. There are only two ways in which diet pills help some people: they help to establish a proper mealtime schedule, as they have to be taken 30 minutes before eating; and they increase the amount of liquids the dieter drinks, as they have to be taken with a glass of water. It is well known that drinking more helps with weight loss, partly as the water helps the body to function more efficeintly, partly as it helps to fill the stomach and thereby reduce the appetite.

Get over it, give up on the "quick fix", and get on with your life. You have two options: either accept yourself as you are, or eat less and exercise more. Stick with that plan and you will eventually reach a reasonable weight. If you can't reach your goal, it may be that your goal, like mine, was a little unrealistic and needs to be re-set. But don't be fooled. Diet pills really don't work.

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