The Hazards of Using Diet Products

All diet products are hazardous in one way or another but some are more dangerous then others. For instance you should steer clear of any product that promises that you will lose ten pounds a week or forty pounds in a month. Not only is this next to impossible but the healthiest weight loss should be accomplished at no more than two pounds a week which translates to eight to ten pounds a month. Otherwise you are risking anorexia, heart attacks, chronic fatigue syndrome, strokes, brain damage, eye damage, muscle wasting  and future obesity.  Also it doesn’t make sense that you should lose weight in a week. You did not gain it in a week and it will take you quite a while to lose it if you want the permanent results of keeping it off for good.

The true mark of a diet scam artist is the before and after photos. Any product that has to resort to this type of advertisement is probably a scam. Usually these photographs are doctored in some way to help sell you the hope that the diet product offers. These types of advertisements also often contain testimonials from individuals claiming to have lost weight. Usually these testimonials are fake and written by a professional copywriter or if it is a celebrity then usually the celebrity has been paid to endorse the product.  The same is true of the medical research that often appears as facts in these diet product advertisements. Sometimes even the Universities that the studies are from are made up.

You should always stay away from diet products that advise limiting your food intake. This is sometimes recommended as a strategy on the side labels of some diet teas and diet pills. Of course if you do this you will lose weight and it may have nothing to do with any pills at all.

You should also stay away from diet products that contain a lot of caffeine, ma huang or ephedra. These cause water weight loss and do not do anything like “flush fat” from your system. The same thing goes for green tea which can cause temporary weight loss simply because it is a powerful diuretic that contains a high percentage of caffeine. Too much of these stimulants can cause agitation, lack of concentration, asthma, chest tightness, tremors, seizures, heart attacks, strokes, anxiety and dehydration that could need hospital treatment.

Yet another mark of a diet product that is a scam is one that is sold as a big package of different tools such as a book, a weight loss calculator and online courses that must be sent to you every week. If you are required to attend seminars, buy pills or prepackaged meals or are asked for more money to reveal the next step in your weight loss plan all the time then chances are you are being snowed by diet product con artists.