Introduction

On the basis that diet pills are a drug and that any pharmacologically manufactured drug will have potentially harmful side effects – there actually are some inherent dangers of using appetite suppressants for some people. For anyone that is overweight making the effort to lose weight can be far more important than just wanting to look good. That is, for anyone that is overweight, or worse obese, losing weight can have a profound effect on their overall health and well-being and these potential benefits can go far beyond looking better or getting into that size smaller dress or pair of new pants.

Short cuts to losing weight

Anyone that is desperate to lose weight will want to shed as many pounds as possibly – as quickly as possible. Some people can reduce their weight quickly just by dieting and increasing their exercise regime; however, many people also need to find a little help to overcome their weight problems and so turn to diet pills. By far the most common diet pills on the market today are serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors. Quite a mouthful agreed, but if you notice that last word in the description “inhibitor” – there’s the clue that these modern and highly effective diet pills actually work by inhibiting your desire to eat, as they are in common terms an appetite suppressant. Anyone who is overweight and is utterly honest with themselves knows that they are overweight because they simply eat too much, compared to the energy they expend. Indeed, they also are probably eating too much of the ‘wrong’ foods too. So, for anyone that is incapable of reducing their consumption of food on their own – being prescribed such a diet pill may well be the way to start to lose weight. However, should you decide to use an appetite suppressant what dangers of using it do you need to discuss with your physician?

The danger of hypertension

As you will see later on there are several dangers associated with taking an appetite suppressant. However, the most common one reported on by clinical studies into these dangers is hypertension. It could be, of course, that prior to commencing a course of dieting pills that you were already suffering from hypertension. However, if the hypertension arises as a direct result of taking these diet pills then it is referred as secondary hypertension. Hypertension, high blood pressure, is a fairly common medical condition in society today and can be effectively treated by your physician. When using any diet pill it is important to ensure you have regular medical check ups looking for things like hypertension, because in some cases the physician might have to recommend that the diet pill you are using isn’t suitable for you. You should also be wary of taking other medications whilst using diet pills as this can also cause the onset of hypertension.

Other serious physical dangers

A more severe risk arising from taking appetite suppressants are heart related problems like cardiac arrest or heart attacks and strokes. Others can include, where the individual concerned has not previously suffered from these symptoms: allergic reactions, severe headaches, hives, swelling in the feet and/or lower legs, fainting, numbness, difficulty in breathing and easy bruising or possibly even bleeding.

Serious mental dangers

For some people taking an appetite suppressant doesn’t affect them physically but their mental state can be adversely affected. This could range from an increased irritability to a full change in personality. So, if using these diet pills causes you to feel depressed, over-active, unable to sleep, paranoid or hallucinatory – seek help from your physician.

Weighing the good against the dangers

For anyone that is over weight, losing weight is very important and using diet pills could be better for them in the long run than remaining overweight. However, as you will have gathered using an appetite suppressant does have dangers whether they are the ones listed above or something less serious like a sore throat or tiredness/lethargy. Therefore it is essential that to minimize the risk of a dangerous reaction you consult with your physician and only use this slimming aid for the period that they recommend, to avoid becoming over-dependent on them.