Weight loss contributes to our physical health and should help mental well-being as well, but often we find ourselves confronting more negative outcomes as opposed to the positive. The sense of satisfaction, motivation, and boost in self-confidence is a part of the weight loss experience. However, many times, the obsession with wanting to look a certain way overshadows the joys that come with weight loss, and instead, we are left feeling psychologically traumatized. The impact of weight loss on our mental health is too evident to be ignored.
– Understanding Diet Pills
Designed to help its users reduce or control their weight, diet pills encompass a group of various drugs that are available both over-the-counter and by prescription — these work by interfering with our body’s metabolic processes to help the weight loss process. Boosting metabolism, suppressing appetite and preventing the absorption of fat by the body are just some of how diet pills tweak with our system.
Despite being prescribed under strict regulations in terms of dosage, diet pills are being abused by users at a disturbing rate. Some of the most commonly abused medicines include Benzphetamine, diethylpropion, mazindol, and phentermine.
Another category of diet pills is those who do not necessarily affect metabolism but in fact work by providing the user with nutritional replacement as a substitute for daily meals. These may contain vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids, glandular products and much more.
– Side Effects Associated with Diet Pills
There are many side effects associated with diet pill consumption. Commonly reported symptoms include:
- Increased heart rate
- Hypertension
- Diarrhea
- Insomnia
- Agitation
- Liver Damage
- Renal Problems
- Rectal Bleeding
Owing to these symptoms, many diet pills have been banned.
– How Weight Loss Affects Mental Health
There is no denying the fact that mental well-being plays a vital role in maintaining our overall health. Dietary supplements, though meant to be harmless, still carry a load of unwanted side effects that are somewhat difficult to cope with. Along with the physiological side effects, there also comes a set of mental side effects that we must tackle. Users of diet pills have even reported signs of irreversible brain functional loss as well as sleep problems, anxiety, impaired cognition, and depression. Following are some critical psychological dangers associated with diet pill use.
1) Depression: A rather common and deep-rooted issue stemming from weight loss, depression is encountered by many on the journey of weight loss. Intense negative thinking and reduced self-esteem are usually experienced by those who wish to lose weight because of complexes associated with their weight.
According to psychologists, depression and poor body image are interrelated. Societal conformities have a crucial role in this as in this day and age, people have assumed that it is only acceptable to look a certain way physically. Adding fuel to the fire is social media and public branding of weight loss products. The desperate need to look perfect has resulted in many people feeling depressed about the way they look. Depression is not a joke because this is where it all starts.
2) Stress and Anxiety: Struggling to lose weight and then making sure it stays off is stressful, to say the least. It is reported to increase stress and anxiety levels in many; particularly those who are known to have a history with emotional eating. Weight loss affects your hormone levels which in turn plays a part in your mental health.
Fluctuating hormonal imbalances are very challenging to deal with as they can lead to mood swings, stress, reduced focus and accompanying anxiety. Weight loss is called a journey for a reason as it is both physically and mentally exhausting. To avoid stress and anxiety, it is prudent to adopt a positive outlook towards the cause and fight cravings with resilience. However, if you feel like you’re starting to forget things or facing other mental health-related issues, make sure you get braintest reviews.
3) Eating Disorders: An aspect of weight loss that is not given nearly the amount of attention it deserves, diet pills are responsible for causing eating disorders in many, especially the younger demographic. Women are more prone to developing eating disorders compared to men. Anorexia, bulimia and binge eating are some commonly encountered disorders. There has been deduced a direct connection between bulimia patients and people on a diet.
The obsession with restricting food intake is damaging to our system. Unfortunately, many dieting individuals often find themselves falling victim to cravings and lose control. These actions thus result in conditions like bulimia.
4) Insomnia: The constituents of many diet pills are stimulants that provide you with more energy and boost your metabolism. Everyone has a different level of drug reception and sensitivity. Depending on your threshold, many times, the effect of stimulants leave an individual with heightened energy. This kind of energy can be compared to drinking caffeinated drinks.
Owing to this increased heart rate and the boost of energy, there are following sleep-related issues, particularly insomnia. Insomnia can also result from anxiety as well as stress associated with diet pill consumption. This, in turn, leads to irritability, depression, daytime drowsiness, increased appetite along with the want to have more pills to help you stay awake during the day.
5) Addiction: An often-overlooked concept, addiction is primarily a concern associated with amphetamine use. Drugs like Adderall are now being used to instigate weight loss rather than the purpose it originally served, i.e., dealing with ADHD. Long-term use of the drug increases the patient’s risk of psychological as well as physical dependency and thus leads to abuse. Amphetamine derivatives are also a rising concern.
Long-term misuse of these will build a tolerance towards the drug and thus will influence the patient into wanting more and more to satisfy their need to achieve the same effect. Once they develop tolerance to them and get addicted to them, they are very likely to venture into cocaine or methamphetamine use; drugs that are incredibly dangerous and possibly life-threatening.
Diet pills are advertised as the easy way out. Weight loss is a slow and steady battle that runs its course which means speeding up the process by employing other shortcuts will bring nothing but bad news. In the image-centric society we dwell in now, physical appearances are everything. It is to either aspire to reach that image or maintain it, that people seek solace in quick way outs like diet pills. Incredibly damaging to both your physical and mental health, diet pill use must be discouraged at every level.
About The Author
Stephanie Braga
Hi, I am Stephanie Braga. A professional blogger and content community manager on this platform. I love to write and post content on different niche. Contact me, if you need any help related to digital marketing or content marketing.
