What's in YOUR Weight Loss Supplement?

 

Beware of any sports drink or supplement marketed as a weight loss or fat burning aid. Many contain unsafe or even illegal stimulants. A 2020 study analyzed seventeen brands of supplements and all contained at least one unapproved stimulant. In 2004 the FDA concluded that a substance known as isopropyloctopamine—also called deterenol—did not qualify as a dietary ingredient in supplements. Yet several studies have identified the presence of deterenol in over-the-counter supplements, and the ingredient was among the substances contained in a food supplement linked to such serious adverse events as agitation, chest pain and cardiac arrest.

"We're urging clinicians to remain alert to the possibility that patients may be inadvertently exposed to experimental stimulants when consuming weight loss and sports supplements," said Dr. Pieter Cohen, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, internist at Cambridge Health Alliance and a co-author of the study. "We're talking about active pharmaceutical stimulants that have not been approved by the U.S. FDA for oral use as either prescription medications or dietary supplements. These ingredients have no place in dietary supplements."

The study found that several supplements available on the internet contained multiple stimulants, including deterenol. In an analysis of 17 brands of supplements labeled as containing deterenol or one of its synonyms, researchers discovered eight brands contained more than one prohibited stimulant. In nearly half of the brands—or eight of 17 brands—deterenol was the only stimulant present, while four of the brands analyzed did not detect deterenol, the researchers said. FDA has targeted many stimulants identified in the tested products.

You don't need a supplement to lose weight. All you need is to consume fewer calories than you body burns due to metabolism and exercise. If you plan to use a supplement for weight loss anyway, then do your research into both the supplement and the company. Buyer beware.