Five Reasons to Avoid Weight Loss and Diet Pills

The media has named obesity as America's new epidemic. According to the Center for Disease Control, over 60% of Americans are overweight or obese. With a decline in the economy, more individuals spend more time at a desk, less time preparing food, and have less money to spend on food. Most Americans look for a fast, cheap, convenient meal-and that usually means fat, unbalanced, and unhealthy.

These unhealthy meals logically produce overweight individuals, many of whom immediately realize the effects of obesity. Searching for a convenient solution to the weight gain problem, many overweight individuals lack the time to work out or commit to a long-term weight loss diet plan.

For these reasons, many Americans are turning to weight loss pills to solve their weight problems. Diet and weight loss pills are available over the counter, by prescription, in natural form, and in chemical form. There are many risks associated with diet pills, even those prescribed by a doctor or suggested by a nutritionist.

Unless the level of obesity is extremely severe and immediately life-threatening, doctors recommend a balanced diet and exercise as the primary means of weight loss. Still, most Americans want a quick and easy fix, and so they turn to diet pills despite the risks.

In advocacy of regular diet and exercise, here are five reasons to avoid weight loss and diet pills.

1) Phenylpropanolamine (PPA)

This ingredient is known to increase the risk of stroke and should be avoided. By FDA rule, over the counter weight loss pills containing PPA were reformulated and over the counter PPA-containing drugs were banned in 2005. PPA is also a common ingredient of decongestants. The risk for stroke is increased in women.

2) Addiction

Like many drugs, there is a high risk of addiction with diet pills. Most diet and weight loss pills are stimulants, and in addition to their other positive and negative side effects, the body can become dependent on them. This is an unnatural state for your body and it is unhealthy to lose weight in this fashion.

3) High blood pressure and heart complications