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Weight Loss Product Warnings -- How to Spot Bad Pills
There are numerous ways to make a bad weight loss product look good. How to Spot Bad Pills is the first article in a series on evaluating weight loss products. My hope is to provide you with reliable, easy to understand, and useful tips for spotting bad weight loss products. For the purpose of this article, the phrase, weight loss pill, refers to over-the-counter, non-prescription weight loss supplements. The following six tips will help you identify weight loss pills that don't back up claims with evidence, cite poorly designed research studies, don't work, and possibly cause serious harm. The tips, arranged in no particular order, are effective in spotting glaring omissions of evidence, misrepresentations, and outright lies. However, many marketers have become quite skilled in the art of statistical illusion, fooling even those of us with extensive experience in statistical analysis. What does this mean for you? Use the six tips from How to Spot a Bad Pill as part of your own overall assessment and not as a definitive evaluation. A "good" weight loss pill based upon my six tips, does not necessarily translate to a well studied, safe, and effective product. However, a bad pill here is a bad pill everywhere. With that quick disclaimer, let's get started... Bad Pill Tip #1 -- References Match each claim cited with a reference. The reference should be clear and include the author's name, the location of the study, primary sponsor, title of study, publication source, year, volume, and pages. A solid claim made for a weight loss pill should not be sales oriented. I fully understand that there is a time to sell. However, I am assuming you are beyond that, and need real information about this weight loss product in question. As you investigate the pill, and the sales copy never seems to go way, that's a red flag. Lets look at two different claims. The first one is NOT a solid science claim..."Amazing New Weight Loss Pill Maximizes Weight Loss...". This belongs back in the sales copy. Instead, here is a claim well grounded in science... "The percentage of weight loss was significantly higher in the test group at the end of the 5 week study...(6)" Notice the reference is clearly cited and displayed by the number 6. This is identifying the 6th listing on the reference page as the source. This brings up a related topic about the reference page. All ads and websites should have a reference page. As a matter of fact, the reference page is more valuable than the testimonials. It is a list of the actual studies used to make a case in favor of a weight loss product. To see an example of a reference page, use this link, Weight Loss Pill Reference Page. Bad Pill Tip #2 -- Mechanism of Action Verify how the weight loss pill works, also called the mechanism of action. Every pill, prescription drugs included, should have the mechanism of action clearly stated with references. Do not label a weight loss pill as "good" without a description on how it works. Bad Pill Tip #3 -- Author Verify the primary author referenced to make the best claim or the author referenced for making most of the claims. Verify, in this case, means to check the reference as "real" and also test the "marketer" for how accessible the information is to get and review. Bad Pill Tip #4 -- Subjects Investigate the number of subjects that have been tested using the weight loss pill in question. This is difficult to judge, but understand that the smaller the study, the less reliable the results. One study with 10 subjects is not enough to make any significant claims. When isolating one study, the number of subjects needed to produce reliable results depends on several factors. I suggest looking through the information provided to you for references to choosing the right number of subjects. If they take the time to write about it in their official study report, then, most likely, they had the best possible number of subjects. In general, if you're reviewing one study measuring one variable, you would like to see at least 50 subjects (n=50). However, we often lower this standard given the difficulty in recruiting for studies. Bad Pill Tip #5 -- Side Effects A well designed, unbiased study does not hide reported side effects (also called adverse events). This should be as easy to find as the headline of the sale copy or the order form. If it's hidden, stay away from that weight loss pill. Bad Pill Tip #6 -- Help If all else fails and you just can't call it a good or bad pill, call your health care provider. Let the person answering the phone know exactly what it is you need. Say something like, "I need feedback on a new weight loss pill, called Pill ABC. Is this a bad pill for me to take or is it a good one?" Personalize the reason for needing the information and the response time will triple. Since you made it clear you're considering taking the pill, they will get back to you fast to avoid any adverse event. If they don't, consider finding a new health care provider. Obviously, there are several other areas to critique a weight loss pill. But these are 6 excellent tips that will help you decide if the pill is good or bad. It simply comes down to checking for very basic information that any credible scientist or physician would display or provide immediately. Not passing just one of the tips is enough to label it as a bad weight loss pill. To Healthy Living! Michael A. Smith, MD Dr. Smith is the primary physician and consultant for the Diet Basics Website of the Weight Loss Professional. Stay tuned for the second article of the series called Weight Loss Product Warning. Please visit the Diet Basics website and take advantage of all the free offers...original e-books and articles, a top rated newsletter, and much more. You can visit the site at, weight-loss-professional.com
MORE RESOURCES: Josh Gad opens up for 1st time about taking weight loss drug: 'It is life-changing' Good Morning America Are Weight-Loss Drugs Like Gym Memberships? The Answer Is Worth Billions The Wall Street Journal Lizzo celebrates hitting weight goal after two years of training The Independent Two Ohio doctors and their clinics disciplined over weight loss drugs Ohio Capital Journal Navjot Singh Sidhu credits pranayama for '33 kg weight loss in 5 months': Know all about this breathing technique Hindustan Times Weight Loss Revolution: New Breakthrough Could Prevent Muscle Loss While Shedding Pounds SciTechDaily Weight Loss With Optimal Body WWLTV.com HealthWatch: Sustainable weight loss with Aurora BayCare Medical Center WeAreGreenBay.com Hims & Hers to Advertise Weight-Loss Shots at the Super Bowl The Wall Street Journal HealthWatch: Sustainable Weight Loss Yahoo! Voices About half of Americans approve of using weight-loss drugs to treat obesity, AP-NORC poll finds The Associated Press Drinking sparkling water may help with weight loss, study finds Medical News Today Here's what Americans think about weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy Mississippi Valley Publishing A key protein may help Ozempic users retain muscle mass while losing fat Medical News Today Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Doctors Explain If Red Light Therapy Really Works for Weight Loss Prevention Magazine Two Ohio doctors and their clinics disciplined over weight loss drugs Vinton Jackson Courier Why Novo Jumped — And Took Out Lilly And Viking Stocks Investor's Business Daily Weight-Loss Surgery Lowers Risk of Developing Complications of Liver Disease in Patients with Cirrhosis and Obesity Cleveland Clinic Newsroom Eli Lilly's head of obesity talks weight-loss innovations for 2025 — from an Ozempic-like pill to a triple-threat shot Business Insider GLP-1 Weight-loss Drugs Should be made Affordable for all Americans Winthrop Transcript Tammy Slaton’s 500-Lb Weight Loss: How the ‘1000-Lb Sisters’ Star Transformed Her Health - NewsBreak Here's what Americans think about weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy The Audubon County Advocate Journal Lizzo reveals slimmed-down figure after reaching weight loss goal: 'First time since 2014' Hindustan Times Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health messenger-inquirer Metsera eyes $289M IPO to fund phase 3 weight loss trial Fierce Biotech Novo Nordisk links next-gen obesity drug to 22% weight loss at Week 36, sending stock up 11% Fierce Biotech Do GLP-1 drugs have health risks beyond their weight loss benefits? Medical News Today Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health Times-Georgian Now, weight loss drugs can control chronic kidney disease among people with diabetes: Why is the US FDA approval significant? The Indian Express Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health Herald Review Novo Nordisk reports topline data from Phase Ib/IIa trial of weight loss therapy Clinical Trials Arena Novo Nordisk stock surges 7% after Ozempic maker’s latest weight-loss drug shows promise Yahoo Finance Medicare to Negotiate Lower Prices for Weight-Loss Drugs The New York Times Can Eating Watermelon Daily Help You Lose Weight? Verywell Health Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health Douglas County Sentinel Can sparkling water help with weight loss? The science behind the bubbles The Atlanta Journal Constitution Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health High Point Enterprise Colorado plans to limit coverage of weight-loss drugs like Wegovy for state employees to save $17M The Colorado Sun Navjot Singh Sidhu loses 33 kilos, shares before and after pictures: ‘Impossible is nothing, guys’ The Indian Express Lizzo drops a weight loss update, talks about ‘weight release’ The Times of India Sweeping review suggests weight-loss drugs’ effect on 175 conditions The Washington Post Why fizzy water won’t help you lose weight – despite what some studies might suggest The Conversation Indonesia Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health KeysNews.com Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health El Paso Inc. States consider high costs, possible savings of covering weight-loss drugs for their workers West Virginia Watch Weight-Loss Surgery Protects Liver Health Star Local Media |
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