Fat burner supplements and pills promise great results within the first few days of taking them. But what are the little-known fat burner pills side effects?
Many people grapple with weight loss. While the sure way of losing weight is through exercise and dieting, most people do not just have the commitment and energy.
In some cases, people suffer diseases and conditions that limit their range of motion. For such people, exercise is out of question.
These make fat burner pills an attractive option for burning fat and, subsequently, losing unwanted weight.
HOW DO FAT BURNER PILLS WORK?
Or rather, how do fat burner pills claim to work?
Different pills contain different ingredients; thus, they might promote weight loss in different ways. Anorexiants work by suppressing your appetite.
They send neurotransmitters to the brain and inhibit the release of the hunger hormone – ghrelin. Some also cause gastric emptying delay, which means the food stays in your gut more, making you feel full.
They may also cause the liver to release glucose. The energy-release from burning fat gives you enough energy to work out longer and improve your endurance. This alteration on the brain’s working is the basis of many fat burner pills side effects.
Most fat burner pills work by increasing your metabolic rate. Your body quickly burns fat and transform it into energy. Others work by inhibiting the absorption of fat in your body.
FAT BURNER PILLS THAT WORK
Studies have shown that some natural fat burner supplements may work.
GREEN TEA
Green tea is such a star in the weight loss world. On top of its other health benefits, it has been found to aid in weight loss, by speeding up metabolism. According to a study in the Journal of Physiology and Behaviour, it also enhances the body’s ability to burn fat for energy.
CAFFEINE
According to this study, caffeine can speed your metabolism by up to 11% when taken within moderate levels. It can also promote weight loss and reduce your BMI.
PROTEIN POWDER
This 2017 study revealed that individuals who took a diet high in proteins lost more weight than those who did not share the diet. Proteins lead to weight loss by making you full for longer and building muscle in the body. It is mostly taken in the form of powder as a dietary supplement.
FAT BURNER PILLS SIDE EFFECTS
1. ALLERGIC REACTIONS
Strict rules and regulations do not bind the dietary supplement industry. Manufacturers tend to get away with adding pretty much anything they desire.
It does not help that not many manufacturers declare every single ingredient they use in their supplements and pills.
Allergic reaction is thus one of the most common fat burner side effects. It may manifest in the form of hives, swelling and trouble breathing. The worst part is, you might not even know what exactly you are reacting to.
2. LIVER DAMAGE
Liver damage is one of the more serious fat burner pills side effects. Usnic acid is present in many fat burner pills. This ingredient has been linked to liver damage and failure among people who take it.
While pills with naturally occurring and seemingly healthy supplements like green tea look like a better option, they are actually just as risky. This study linked green tree extract to liver damage.
3. CAN CAUSE HYPERTENSION
When trying to lose weight, the last thing you want is anything that interferes with your blood pressure. Unfortunately, some fat burner pills ingredients do just that and more.
Caffeine is a common addition to fat burner pills. So are ephedrine, fenfluramine, and phenylpropanolamine. This study linked all these compounds to hypertension.
These compounds work by suppressing your appetite but end up affecting your blood pressure. Herbal-based fat burner pills aren’t any better as they spike your blood pressure and may even constrict your blood vessels.
4. OILY SPOTTING
Oily spotting is such an embarrassing and adverse fat burner pills side effects. It is common when you take fat burner pills that promote weight loss by blocking fat absorption in the body.
Some of the fat finds its way to your stool. People who use fat burner pills are very likely to experience fatty stools and oily spotting in their undergarments.
It can also cause other stomach problems like diarrhoea and constipation.
5. OVERDEPENDENCE
Using fat burner pills over and over again creates such a dependence on the drugs. Some ingredients also inspire addiction and cause withdrawal symptoms.
Because of their addictive nature, you should stop taking some fat burner pills after a certain period. Others should also be discontinued if they show no results after a specific period.
Since many of them are bought over the counter, this may not be adhered to without the doctor’s guidance, thus leading to overdependence.
6. DEHYDRATION
When you are dehydrated, you experience dry mouth, dizziness which may escalate to severe headache. It is worse if you try to participate in exercises in this condition, as you may pass out.
7. INSOMNIA
Coffee on a regular day will keep you up and increase your focus. Fat burner pills that contain pure caffeine extracts amp that effect and contribute greatly to insomnia.
Insomnia may result in extreme fatigue, inability to perform your tasks, and anxiety disorder and depression. Lack of sleep causes weight gain.
8. NAUSEA AND VOMITING
This mostly occurs if your fat burner pills work by suppressing your appetite. These drugs make your body simulate satiety; an effect best described as anorectic. They also delay the digestion process to stall food as much as possible, leading to nausea and vomiting.
9. CARDIOVASCULAR CONDITIONS
Ingredients in some fat burner pills can cause increase the heart rate, cause the airways to dilate, constrict blood vessels increase or decrease blood pressure and even cause a heart attack.
10. AFFECTS YOUR MENTAL HEALTH
Fat burner pills can cause anxiety, restlessness and mood swings. This is especially common in anorexiants – drugs that work by altering neurotransmitters in your brain to suppress appetite.
People who take diet and fat burner pills may exhibit changed behaviour and manifest aggressive behaviour, paranoia, euphoria, nervousness, and depression.
CONCLUSION
Perhaps the worst of the fat burner pills side effects is the fact that they do not even work. They are little to no evidence that they cause any notable increase in the body’s fat-burning ability.
If taken alongside exercise and low-calorie diet, they might show some improvements.
But if taken independently, the gains range from so little to none. All these dire side effects and you do not get even to lose much weight.
If you lose any weight at all, you will gain it back if you stop using the pills but do not take up exercise and good dieting habits.
So, why not just exercise and eat right then? This fat-blaster sequence will burn through your body’s fat more than any fat burner pills ever could. You do not even need equipment to make it happen.
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