Worldwide statistics are highlighting the growing problem of obesity; this situation is now affecting children of pre-school age and is a worrying aspect. Eventually a decision to do something about the excess weight must be made and those that are serious about it will finally realize that you cannot use short term methods. Impatience to see results usually means that overweight people can frequently resort to using weight loss drugs to achieve that fast result they crave.

The idea behind the drugs is to quicken each person's metabolism enabling the weight to be lost much quicker. It was only after scientists discovered that these drugs had side effects and were related to heart valve disease that they were taken off the shelves. More recently, new drugs have been developed and prescribed by doctors; many of which are still waiting for FDA approval.

Most people have known friends or family members who have tried using diet pills and have seen tremendous improvement. It is a tempting proposition, to lose weight while still maintaining the same diet; who would say no? As a result of this, consumers everywhere have spent untold millions on these supposed wonderful weight loss drugs.

The more recent weight control pills can be prescribed by your doctor, dietitian or purchased in a drug store and despite the advances made in the drug manufacture, there are still dangers including vomiting and stomach problems. But they are not the only side effects and some can be more harmful than others. These include heart attacks, tremors, strokes, hallucinations and renal failure.

Of course, many factors can affect the type and severity of problems like family history, weight, age and lifestyle; this is why it is so important to see the doctor before starting a course of pills; should you decide to stop taking the treatment, other side effects can occur as a result. Problems like depression, nausea, bad mood swings, nightmares, insomnia for example have all been reported when a person has stopped taking the weight control pills.

Although these weight loss drugs do work, an increase in beneficial effects occurs when regular exercise is undertaken along with a change in eating habits. The type of balanced food groups would be oats, cereals, rice, potatoes with fruit and vegetables as the best source of minerals, fiber and vitamins.

Exercising will need to be carried out if you want to benefit from the healthy food option but this probably needs to be worked out in advance with your physician. The best exercise plans should have cardiovascular and weight training exercises as this helps burn calories and increase the muscle to fat ratio that will increase a person's metabolism and assist with weight loss.