Weight Loss Supplements
It is little wonder that dietary supplements to lose weight that work are highly sought after because they provide a potentially convenient way to lose weight. There are currently 2 different types of these pills:
Stimulants
These pills work by increasing the body’s work rate - metabolism and heart rate are elevated and more energy is burned as a result. Assuming the same amount of food is eaten then more fat than usual will be burned. This is normally the case because they often also have appetite supressant properties as well.
Such drugs include ampetamines and ephedrine. Both are controlled substances and not legally available for weight loss in most countries although in some jurisdictions they are allowed.
Herbal Products
There are many different herbal products on the market. Often they contain a variety of different natural ingredients such as ginseng, in fact often they are the same but just in different amounts so to form a unique “cocktail”.
Typically, they will boast of increased metabolism or fat burning mechanisms.
However, the jury is out on which herbal remedies work versus those that don’t and how pronounced the effects are. Very rarely do the manufacturers allow double blind clinical trials of their product to be performed which would allow scientists to evaluate whether there is an true effect or whether the placebo effect accounts for most of the positive results.
There are also a number of drugs in development but none of these are available to the mass market and with minimal side effects.