OTC Pill Gives False Hope For Weight Loss

When OTC Xenical comes to a pharmacy near you, run for your life!

This afternoon after I finished working out at the downtown Spartanburg YMCA during my lunch break like I have every day between 2-3pm since I started livin' la vida low-carb, I noticed there was a voicemail message on my cell phone from a local reporter with the area newspaper, The Spartanburg (SC) Herald-Journal.

It seems the reporter named Amanda wanted my comments about what I thought about the new over-the-counter weight loss pill that is making headlines this week. Of course, as someone who keeps up with the news in regards to health and weight loss, I was familiar with the story.

This Washington Post story notes that after just one day of deliberations a panel of so-called medical "experts" made an 11-2 recommendation to the Food and Drug Administration to give the green light to the drug orlistat which will is known by the name brand Xenical.

If final FDA approval is given to GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare to begin selling the drug without a prescription, then it could be available to consumers within months.

The panelists were impressed by the results of their six-month study of orlistat where the obese study subjects lost about 5-6 more pounds than those participants who were given a placebo. However, the caveat about using this drug is the weight that will cease and weight gain will begin once someone stops using it. In other words, you're stuck taking it for the rest of your life! Guess who makes out good on that deal?!

Additionally, this wonder weight loss pill is supposed to be combined with good diet and exercise for effective use. What's the point in doing that AND taking this drug?! Why not eat a nutritionally-sound, nutrient-dense diet to begin with (such as low-carb) and forget about taking a pill.

That's pretty much what I told Amanda in the brief interview she conducted with me. She wanted to know what I thought about this issue since I am a living, breathing example of how to lose weight naturally without the use of drugs or gimmicks. She even referred to me as a "weight loss expert" since I wrote a book about my experience. That's still strange to me, but I'm getting used to it.

As I have written previously in this blog post about Acomplia, people need to stop looking to the pharmaceutical industry to help them lose weight. There are no quick fixes. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but there aren't. And even with these drugs, you still have to limit your caloric intake and exercise. Does anybody tell you this dirty little secret? Heck no, they're trying to sell a drug!

Plus, what are the potential dangers of this drug on the public? Have the side effects been thoroughly examined before plopping this possibly harmful drug in front of millions of desperate people? The images are too graphic to display at my blog, but here is one example of what Xenical did to one woman in the UK who took it and the devastating effects it had on her physical appearance and health. Yikes! Makes you wanna stick to the all-natural approach, doesn't it?!

We live in a culture that is always looking for the "next big thing." We need to stop looking for a drug to obliterate obesity and start doing what we know we need to do: Eat healthy (which in my opinion is a low-carb lifestyle), incorporate moderate exercise, take your vitamins, drink plenty of water, and get adequate sleep. This really isn't rocket science people.

Are you someone who believes the answer to your weight problem can be found in a pill? If so, then please listen to me for a moment. That's a big lie that is setting you up for disappointment. An alleged weight loss pill will simply give you false hope that you can overcome your weight problem.

Let's face it, when you are fat you are desperate to do literally ANYTHING to change that. Am I right? Hey, I've been there and I know those feelings all too well. I'm not proud to admit I used to take Dexatrim and other OTC weight loss drugs trying to get a handle on my weight. But none of those drugs changed my habits. That's what is missing with all these drugs that are making headlines in the fight against obesity. Where is the LIFESTYLE CHANGE?!

It is my firm belief that weight loss must first begin in the mind where a sincere desire to change takes place. Then, a plan of action must be chosen to bring about that change. For me it was livin' la vida low-carb, but it could be different for others. Weight loss is not "one-size-fits-all." Finally, execution of that plan and sticking with it for the rest of your life will result in permanent weight control and vastly improved overall health.

Sounds easy, doesn't it? It really is, despite the challenge. But the rewards of weight loss are too numerous to measure and you will never know how good it feels to be thin after a lifetime of being overweight and obese until you get there yourself.

Won't you take this journey with me to start livin' la vida low-carb? It'll show you that you don't need no stinkin' pill to help you lose weight forever! GO FOR IT!

1-24-06 UPDATE: You might also be interested in what diet book author Dr. Joel Fuhrman from DiseaseProof.com thinks about this new weight loss drug. Very poignant. If you like what you read, then check out his Eat To Live book!