Beware Fad Diets

I understand why people want to believe losing weight is as simple as taking a pill or going on the latest diet featured in a beauty magazine.

It’s hard to be overweight.

It can lower your confidence and lead to serious health problems like diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

It’s no wonder that thousands of people buy herbal and “natural” products that claim to “speed up metabolism” or “block the body’s absorption of fat.”

The scary truth isn’t that these supplements usually don’t work. It’s that they can be seriously hazardous to your health.

Look at this week’s action from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Federal Trade Commission. The agencies issued warning letters to companies that illegally market over-the-counter HCG products as “homeopathic” for weight loss.

For several months now, a growing number of people have been taking HCG – human chorionic gonadotropin – while often eating no more than 500 calories. The HCG products were sold in stores and over the internet in the form of drops, pellets and sprays. Doctors use HCG, a hormone produced by the human placenta, to treat female infertility, according to the FDA.

Not only is HCG not approved for weight-loss but restricting diets to 500 calories can be unhealthy, federal officials said.

“Consumers on such a very low calorie diet are at increased risk for side effects including gallstone formation, electrolyte imbalance and heart arrhythmias,” a FDA news release states.

The best way to lose weight is gradually – through proper diet and regular exercise.

You’ll like the side effects a lot better, too.

Alice Warchol is a freelance health writer and fitness instructor.

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