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Hydroxycut, Fen-phen and Ephedra: The Weight Loss Nightmare

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Houston, TXIf you have been using dietary supplements to aid in your weight loss, then you are by now probably aware of the recent Hydroxycut recall announced by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Iovate Health Sciences. The recall was announced after the FDA received reports of serious Hydroxycut side effects, including liver failure.

So far, the FDA has received reports of 23 serious health problems linked to Hydroxycut products. The agency also received a report of 1 death—a teenage male who used Hydroxycut dietary supplements. The FDA is not yet sure what ingredient in the Hydroxycut products causes liver damage.

WeightlossThe furor over the side effects linked to Hydroxycut has people asking if there is anything that is safe to take as a weight loss supplement. History, however, indicates that at least some weight loss supplements have serious side effects.

It was over a decade ago that Fen-phen (an anti-obesity drug that contained fenfluramine and phentermine) was widely used on the market. Of course, Fen-phen was later linked to an increased risk of pulmonary hypertension and valvular heart disease. The risk was especially high in women, although that may have been because Fen-phen was used more often by women than by men. In 1997, the FDA requested that Fen-phen be removed from the market.

In announcing its removal from the market, the FDA noted that findings from doctors found "approximately 30 percent of patients who were evaluated had abnormal echocardiograms, even though they had no symptoms."

The removal of Fen-phen from the market was followed by the filing of thousands of lawsuits against the maker of the drug, alleging it caused serious heart problems and, in some cases, resulted in death. One death that was linked to Fen-phen involved a 30-year-old woman who died after taking Fen-phen for less than a month. The woman was trying to lose a few pounds before her wedding. A lawsuit filed by the woman's family was eventually settled for an undisclosed amount.

In addition to Fen-phen, there was also a great deal of concern about Ephedra, a product found in some weight loss supplements, including Hydroxycut. Ephedra was widely used for weight loss and to help boost energy, however critics alleged the supplement caused heart attacks, strokes and death—including, allegedly, the death of a 23 year old pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles and the deaths of 2 dozen soldiers, according to CBS news.

Ephedra was banned in 2004, after consumer advocates and medical experts repeatedly argued that the supplement was dangerous. A CBS News report states that before Ephedra was banned, it was linked to 155 deaths and 16,000 adverse events. Those adverse events included an Army pilot who was left without his functional memory.

So now we have Hydroxycut, allegedly causing liver failure and other serious side effects. The FDA has announced a recall of a number of Hydroxycut products (although not all of them), while Hydroxycut's maker has said that the recall was announced, "out of an abundance of caution."

A 2008 case series and review of liver toxicity that appeared in the World Journal of Gastroenterology, noted that Hydroxycut, "has been suspected to have possible liver toxicity,"—note that this was written at the end of 2008, before the FDA's recall was announced. The case review illustrated 2 women who experienced "severe acute hepatitis" after using Hydroxycut. One of the women, a 40-year-old bodybuilder, began taking 6 Hydroxycut pills a day just one week before experiencing side effects. The second woman was a 33-year-old who took Hydroxycut for 2 weeks for weight loss but stopped taking the dietary supplement when she experienced side effects.

According to the researchers, "Both patients in this report used the dietary supplement Hydroxycut within a short time frame before presenting with acute hepatitis, suggesting Hydroxycut as the most likely etiology for acute liver injury." Furthermore, neither of the patients had a history that would explain their liver problems. The researchers go on to note that some key ingredients in Hydroxycut have been linked to liver toxicity. Those include G. Cambogia, Chromium and Camellia Sinensis (the scientific name for green tea).

Hydroxycut is a popular weight loss supplement, used by millions of people, so it may seem that 23 reports of serious injury is a small amount, carrying with it very little risk. However, it is important to keep in mind that people taking Hydroxycut could purchase it without a prescription, so there is a good chance their doctors did not know they were taking it. Even if those patients fell ill after taking the supplement, they may not have made the connection that Hydroxycut could be linked to their side effects.

That means that there could be many more people who suffered serious Hydroxycut side effects who have no idea that they did.

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READER COMMENTS

Posted by

on
They banned it because it ,not only because it was effective in weight loss, but also for it's other miraculous properties. It wasn't because of the complications and deaths it caused. Big Pharma's drugs kills 10's of thousands every year. You don't see them banning their death pills, do you? No, they just watch countless lawsuits being filed because of dangers. They pay the families and move on to the next drug that will never cure anything.
The point is, is that if something good for the body works and it cuts into their profits, they will use their might to get it pulled off of the shelf and banned. Then they will pay scientists to write these bogus books, papers, and articles explaining why a pill or supplement is dangerous and shouldn't be used.
They know all too well that the Chinese have used ephedra sinica for 1000's of years and that it was extremely effective.

They have the monopoly on people's health. Disgusting.
Big Pharma's and the FDA's mantra - We want you sick, fat, and addicted!
Well, lean, and clean doesn't support the evil machine.

Posted by

on
My friend believed that she lost her kidneys through the use of Fen-phen containing diet pills. When I met her she was on dialysis and now she has passed. I was told that Opra said that if there was a pill that would make you loose weight that she would know about it and she would be slim.

Let us look at the big picture and be thankful for the health that we do have. If we are a little ample and healthy, why sweat it? It's really the silly part when you consider, loss of kidney function or heart damage!

What we can do: 1) study nutrition at every opportunity, 2) exercise like for an hour a day walking or other, 3) take a quality whole food vitamin from a health food store that doesn't have toxic binders and fillers or an artificially died coating.
4) Stop overeating even at holidays. 5) Eat fresh fruit and vegies every day, like 5 servings of living food straight from the earth and not a laboratory.
6) Read labels. Too long a list is Franken-food, don't get it. Stuff you recognize and not hard to pronounce, it's good.
7) Learn the "dirty dozen" to avoid if not organic.
8) Learn a few key chemicals to avoid and know that if it has a word in it that you do recognize in a long name, that it isn't necessarily a nurtrient.
9) take a nutrition class.
And that is just a start. Enjoy

Posted by

on
My best friend's mother is the woman who died of this drug back in 97, prior to the drug's removal. She was a beautiful person with three very young daughters. Being a mom was her life and my best friend is still hurting from the loss of her mother. She died of complications caused by fen phen. The hospital sent her home deathly ill, and several days later she collapsed on the ground in the middle of the night.
My advice to individuals who want to lose weight, do NOT take diet pills. You can lose weight with exercise and a healthy diet. It may sound cliche, but diet pills can be deadly. by my best friend, her family, and her mother who died a painful, untimely death.

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