The Dangers of Diet Drugs

After being bombarded by television commercials, billboards, and magazine touting slim, beautiful people, the everyday American has become obsessed with skinny. It seems people will do almost anything in the eternal struggle to drop dress sizes and lose inches and pounds. Fad diets, extreme work outs, and pills offer false promises of quick weight loss. Unfortunately, some diet drugs also offer dangerous and sometimes lethal side effects.

What is on the shelves

“If a health store or neighborhood pharmacy carries a product on its shelves then it must have been approved by some government agency.” This is a misconception held by many Americans who purchase and use diet drugs. In reality, diet drugs are not tested for safety the way prescription drugs are required to be.

The law

The use of the compound ephedra in weight loss supplements was banned by the FDA in 2004. The compound is a stimulant that has been known to cause stroke and sometimes death in some users. Drug companies have begun to include caffeine and citrus aurantium in many of their ephedra-free products. The danger here is that when these two stimulants are taken together, their reaction raises blood pressure and heart rate.

If you or someone you love has suffered injury or death because of a dangerous diet medication, you may have the right to recover damages. Contact the Racine diet drug lawyers of Habush, Habush, & Rottier, S.C. at 800.682.3434 for a free consultation. We will discuss your case and further legal options.