5 ms·

does that mean that these weight loss suplements actually work?

girvo 12y ago
Possibly. At least, they have a far higher chance of working than other pointless placebos, however being an un-researched analog of a strong stimulant it comes with some serious risks, and not very nice side-effects.
- nkozyra 12y ago
  Yeah the big thing here is it's going to be super unpleasant to use at best and dangerous at worst. That said, people use and have used amphetamines (legally and illegally) for nearly a century. It used to be pretty commonplace to take speed during long study sessions. And it's not a ton different now with ritalin and adderall, although they at least need a prescription now. All in all, I have been an active user of supplements for most of my life and news in the last few years has caused me to seriously reconsider this. I haven't touched any of these things in months now. It's just not worth it.
derefr 12y ago
If you really want to lose weight, there are lots of things that work. As a class, they're called anorectics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anorectic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anorectic). Unsurprisingly, they're almost universally prescription drugs, because bypassing your metabolism, by definition, has side-effects(!), and people tend to abuse these drugs—hitting all the side-effects and then some—if they're not being carefully prescribed. There are a few exceptions, though. Pseudoephedrine (the OTC decongestant) is an anorectic. For that matter, ephedrine (that stuff locked behind the counter in the nutrition shops) is a better one. You can't legally put either of them in a "supplement", but you can just buy them on their own, just like you can buy plain TSP washing powder. --- ETA: as a fun aside, there are non-anorectic weight-loss drugs that work (i.e. drugs that make you lose weight through some other mechanism than making you less hungry.) They tend to be even worse, though. DNP[1], for example: "slips the chain" on your mitochondria so they spin through the Krebs cycle uselessly without any work products. The result? Your body (including your brain!) gets as hot as an overclocked CPU. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4-Dinitrophenol http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4-Dinitrophenol
- function_seven 12y ago
  > but you can just buy them on their own, just like you can buy plain TSP washing powder. Are you referring to this? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trisodium_phosphate#Exercise_performance_enhancement http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trisodium_phosphate#Exercise_pe...
  - derefr 12y ago
    Hah! I wasn't (and wasn't aware anyone would be crazy enough to put TSP inside their body); I was just making the direct parallel: both ephedrine and TSP exist in an odd regulatory state where, although they can't be used as an ingredient in a compound product, they can be purchased OTC in a pure form and then "compounded" into those same products by the end-user. Just like you can mix some TSP into your regular laundry detergent, you can mix some ephedrine into your regular diet shakes or what-have-you.
    - unwind 12y ago
      So you didn't read the part where it talks about the (legal) use of TSP as a food additive, then? Trisodium phosphate is commonly found in many brands of children's cereal, toothpaste, processed cheese, meats, and canned soups. That is tagged as an "unreliable quote" by Wikipedia, but the fact that TSP has an E-number in the EU must mean it is (was?) used in food products.
      - sukilot 12y ago
        I suspect there is a large scale factor difference in dose between whatever common food use there is (preservative or whatever) and the body hacking use.
    - function_seven 12y ago
      That's funny, at first that's what I thought you meant, but then when I read the Wikipedia article (and also discovered for the first time the internal use case), I convinced myself that I had misunderstood. So you are actually referring to the general banning of phosphates on ecological grounds, but TSP's exception as a stand-alone product.
farresito 12y ago
I'm surprised most people look to lose weight with supplements and medicines when the only thing you need to do is to change your diet. I guess they don't contemplate changing their diet. If people only followed a healthier diet, 99% of the problems people suffer would disappear. And it's a shame. All this industry is corrupt, pushing lies to the consumer. I'm not surprised.
- vidarh 12y ago
  If changing your diet was that simple, there would be far fewer problems with obesity. It's not that simple for most people. Habits and compulsive behaviours can be extremely hard to change. There are few things that are harder to change on a long term basis than human behaviour.

girvo 12y ago

Possibly. At least, they have a far higher chance of working than other pointless placebos, however being an un-researched analog of a strong stimulant it comes with some serious risks, and not very nice side-effects.

nkozyra 12y ago
Yeah the big thing here is it's going to be super unpleasant to use at best and dangerous at worst. That said, people use and have used amphetamines (legally and illegally) for nearly a century. It used to be pretty commonplace to take speed during long study sessions. And it's not a ton different now with ritalin and adderall, although they at least need a prescription now. All in all, I have been an active user of supplements for most of my life and news in the last few years has caused me to seriously reconsider this. I haven't touched any of these things in months now. It's just not worth it.

derefr 12y ago

If you really want to lose weight, there are lots of things that work. As a class, they're called anorectics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anorectic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anorectic). Unsurprisingly, they're almost universally prescription drugs, because bypassing your metabolism, by definition, has side-effects(!), and people tend to abuse these drugs—hitting all the side-effects and then some—if they're not being carefully prescribed. There are a few exceptions, though. Pseudoephedrine (the OTC decongestant) is an anorectic. For that matter, ephedrine (that stuff locked behind the counter in the nutrition shops) is a better one. You can't legally put either of them in a "supplement", but you can just buy them on their own, just like you can buy plain TSP washing powder. --- ETA: as a fun aside, there are non-anorectic weight-loss drugs that work (i.e. drugs that make you lose weight through some other mechanism than making you less hungry.) They tend to be even worse, though. DNP[1], for example: "slips the chain" on your mitochondria so they spin through the Krebs cycle uselessly without any work products. The result? Your body (including your brain!) gets as hot as an overclocked CPU. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4-Dinitrophenol http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4-Dinitrophenol

function_seven 12y ago
> but you can just buy them on their own, just like you can buy plain TSP washing powder. Are you referring to this? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trisodium_phosphate#Exercise_performance_enhancement http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trisodium_phosphate#Exercise_pe...
- derefr 12y ago
  Hah! I wasn't (and wasn't aware anyone would be crazy enough to put TSP inside their body); I was just making the direct parallel: both ephedrine and TSP exist in an odd regulatory state where, although they can't be used as an ingredient in a compound product, they can be purchased OTC in a pure form and then "compounded" into those same products by the end-user. Just like you can mix some TSP into your regular laundry detergent, you can mix some ephedrine into your regular diet shakes or what-have-you.
  - unwind 12y ago
    So you didn't read the part where it talks about the (legal) use of TSP as a food additive, then? Trisodium phosphate is commonly found in many brands of children's cereal, toothpaste, processed cheese, meats, and canned soups. That is tagged as an "unreliable quote" by Wikipedia, but the fact that TSP has an E-number in the EU must mean it is (was?) used in food products.
    - sukilot 12y ago
      I suspect there is a large scale factor difference in dose between whatever common food use there is (preservative or whatever) and the body hacking use.
  - function_seven 12y ago
    That's funny, at first that's what I thought you meant, but then when I read the Wikipedia article (and also discovered for the first time the internal use case), I convinced myself that I had misunderstood. So you are actually referring to the general banning of phosphates on ecological grounds, but TSP's exception as a stand-alone product.

farresito 12y ago

I'm surprised most people look to lose weight with supplements and medicines when the only thing you need to do is to change your diet. I guess they don't contemplate changing their diet. If people only followed a healthier diet, 99% of the problems people suffer would disappear. And it's a shame. All this industry is corrupt, pushing lies to the consumer. I'm not surprised.

vidarh 12y ago
If changing your diet was that simple, there would be far fewer problems with obesity. It's not that simple for most people. Habits and compulsive behaviours can be extremely hard to change. There are few things that are harder to change on a long term basis than human behaviour.