Diet Aids and Weight loss products

[Hayashi]

Here in Singapore a product, called Slim 10, has just been pulled off the shelves recently. Apparently it contains a product called "fenfluramine" or something like that.
Thus far at least one person has died as a result of liver failure caused by the drug. Another, an actress, pulled through after her boyfriend donated half his liver for transplanting (fortunately it was a tissue match). A few others have reported liver complications, again caused by the drug.
Any one heard of the active agent? I reember vaguely something called "phenphen" that was banned in the US.

Redux and Pondimin made up the fen-phen combination.
In July 1997, researchers at the Mayo Clinic issued a startling report linking heart valve disease with patients who took phen fen.

As a result, Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories, the pharmaceutical division of AHP, withdrew fenfluramine (Pondimin) from the market.

Later in the year, the Food and Drug Administration advised those who took the drug combination to see their doctors and American Home Products Corporation (AHP), makers of the diet drug combination agreed in October, 1999 to pay $3.75 billion in compensation to thousands of people who had used the drugs before they were removed from the market after being linked to heart valve disease.

Seems one of the ingredients is the same one you mention!
I wonder who brought it into your country and if they knew there was this much of a health risk involved?

[Sir Kenyth]

Some people, like me, gain weight very easily. Part of it is a sedentary lifestyle from a combination of work and school. Most weight problems are simply genetic and diet related. I used to think that athletic people worked hard all the time to maintain. Some do, but not most. I know more than a few who are simply naturally pre-disposed to it. I have a friend who is simply athletic by nature. He doesn't run for years and can sprint like he's been training for months. He can eat like a horse and only gain a minimal amout of weight. If he decides to lose ten pounds, he just quits snacking for a month or so. He puts on muscle easily. That's the way it goes. Some draw better cards than others in the game of life.

I've finally changed my dietary habits for the better and I think it will stick this time. I try to eat mostly lean meat, whole grains, fresh fuits and vegetables, and fresh nuts throughout the week. I splurge a bit on the weekends, but keep it to one reasonable serving. Weight is coming off slowly but I'm not hungry as I eat the healthy things when I get hungry. I'll combine exercise back with it when I get out of school. I should do better then. I won't lie. It's a bit of a pain. When eating fresh foods, you have to shop about 2-3 times a week to avoid spoilage. It's also a bit more expensive to eat fresh produce. The menu is a bit boring also. I have to agree with certain doctors though. I think refined and processed flours, sugars and fats are major contributors to our weight problems in the US. The major providers of these being the fast food we seem to eat almost daily. Let's face it, lunch hours are short and fast food is, well, fast!

[quote]Originally posted by Moni:

:::SNIP...worm stuff::: [img]smile.gif[/img]

Eeeep!!! hehe I really was kidding Moni...just the thought of a worm living in me grosses me out [img]smile.gif[/img] But I do appreciate the sentiment and I think your article will deter anyone here who had serious worm thoughts [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Azred]

Originally posted by Attalus: Larry, I have no idea what diet your lovely wife is disparaging, but I hope that it wasn't the low-carb ones, because I lost 80lb. on the Atkins plan, and Gal lost 34. (She had just had Will). Kept it off, too. In 28 years of practicing medicine, I have never seen one do harm to a patient.

I know that Belle has been on the Atkins plan for almost 2 months and it hasn't done her any harm whatsoever. Quite the opposite, in fact--she feels great! The fact that we work out thrice weekly doesn't hurt, either.

I equate all the "fast and effortless" weight-loss plans to the old snake oil products. [img]graemlins/laugh3.gif[/img]

[quote]Originally posted by Attalus:

No sweat, Larry, I have been arguing with dieticians about this for so long that I sort of saw it coming. The problem is that many people mistake ketosis (the condition of having ketones in your blood, seen in anybody while dieting) with ketoacidosis (the condition, seenin diabetics, of having so many ketones in your blood that your acid:base balance is altered, perhaps fatally.) I know well that I am not gonna convince anyone here, but suffice it tsay that my weight (and Gal's) remain down, my cholesterol and triglycerides are normal, and I feel great.

Attalus, would you mind sending some info my way about the diet you and Gal follow? Im such a picky eater I doubt Ill be able to find one I can stomach So Im loosing weight the old fashioned way, eating what I want, just smaller proportions and hiking and walking more.

[Donut]

Originally posted by Melusine: Once your stomach is used to large quantities of food, dieting will leave you constantly hungry...

Not so Mel. You don't have to be hungry when dieting, you just have to eat the right things (easier said than done).

Perhaps that's what you meant. If you starve yourself to lose weight the body will go into starvation mode and require less food. If you then return to your original diet the body will pile on the pounds. Dieting is easy - I've done it hundreds of times.

When I had a weight problem I lost 147 lbs in 13 months. My weight isn't a problem to me anymore.

[Sir Kenyth]

Has anyone read about the theory that insulin spikes from eating too much refined sugar and flour throw the bodies metabolism out of balance and contribute to the unnatural accumulation of body fat while having mild episodes of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)? The low blood sugar stimulates the appetite and causes a vicious cycle of poor eating habits and chronic fatigue. It sounds good on paper when you read it, but I was wondering what everyone thinks of it. There are so many theories on diet and appetite that it boggles the mind as to what's real science and what's not.

[Attalus]

Sir Kenyth, that is the theory behind all of the low-carb diets.

MagiK, trry any bookstore for The new Atkins Diet Revolution by Dr.Kenneth Atkins. You are never hungry, but you do develop cravings (I was on it for 1 year,exactly) Started every morning with a cheese omelet with bacon.

Azred, glad to hear that Belle is doing well.

I should say that diet is not enough on its own. Exercise is much better. I'm the git at work that walks past the dieting poeple muunching cheeseburgers or whaetever and I still have a slim figure