The Chatterbox, Volume 81, Issue 1, Oct. 15, 2002

Dieting dangers

Students use diet pills, powders, drinks to replace healthy foods, exercise

BY SHEENA WILLIAMS
REPORTER

Diet pills, drinks, powders and other products are all available either over the counter or by prescription. They are illegally being taken by teens of all ages.

Some take them while working out and others in the privacy of their own home. Dieters seem to believe this is a healthy way to lose weight and others think it is a poison to the body.

The diet pill Fen-Phen, better known as the "poison pill," was recalled not too long ago because of its dangerous ingredients, Pondimin and Redux, according to Salon.com.

Nearly a third of all the millions of dieters who took Fen-Phen while it was on the market will severely suffer from some degree of heart and lung damage from these pills. One student has experienced diet pill problems firsthand.

Maddie Grigoryev, junior, says she only took them because she was working out. Grigoryev said, "The pills work but not as well as regulating what you eat on your own." She has stopped taking them because they make her feel worse than before and overly tired. Grigoryev thought they would work, but they didn’t.

"Diet pills have short-term and long-term effects," said Becky Meadema, nurse, "Don’t take them unless supervised by a physician." There are four more common prescription diet pills.

They include Xenical, Meridia, Adipex P and Fastin. All four of these medications include several unwanted side effects. Common effects include blurred vision, dizziness, dry mouth, sleeplessness and irritability. For more information about these medicines, consult a doctor or a local nutrition store. Remember these diet pills are not offered to people under the age of 18.

Sophomore Jill Harris, said, "I don’t think people should take diet pills because they aren’t safe. If you really care about losing weight you should exercise and try to stay healthy instead of popping pills."

There are several complaints about these pills recorded daily. The top three complained about are Metabolift, Chitosan and Xenadrine, according to thedietpills.com. Extremely overweight people who use these drugs have two times the risk of getting cancer, three times the possibility of heart disease and up to 40 times the threat of developing diabetes.

Diet pills can be dangerous and they can harm dieters. "Pill poppers" can be hurt by the techniques they use to lose weight. Meadema said, "They are dangerous and can be very harmful to your body." Consulting a doctor is a major step to staying healthy if it is honestly thought someone is overweight.