Diet season is here—telltale signs include the sudden lack of parking spots, spin bikes, and treadmills at my gym. All that means shopping for a bikini can’t be far behind. If you're tempted to shop for a new diet pill instead of bathing suit, don't.
The claims for some of these diet pills are tempting (especially when you’re thinking about squeezing into last season’s bikini), but the Food and Drug Administration has recently expanded its warning about more than 70 weight loss pills that pose serious health risks. Here's the list.
An FDA analysis found that some of the unlisted active ingredients in the pills include bumetanide (a potent diuretic available by prescription only), cetilistat (an experimental obesity drug not approved for marketing in the United States), fenproporex (a controlled substance that is not approved for marketing in the United States), fluoxetine (a prescription antidepressant), furosemide (a potent prescription diuretic), phenytoin (an anti-seizure medication), phenolphthalein (a laxative also used in chemical experiments and a suspected cancer-causing agent), rimonabant (a drug not approved for use in the United States), and sibutramine (the same ingredient in the prescription-only drug Meridia and a controlled substance). The FDA created a question and answer section on its Web site to explain more about the contaminated diet pills and the specific risks associated with the different ingredients.
Check with your doctor if you’re considering buying any sort of weight-loss supplement. For more info on how to lose weight safely and keep it off, check out our April/May issue, which is on newsstands now.
