Medications to control appetite are a serious consideration for many dieters. If you struggle with hunger pangs, these medications might be of interest to you, too. After all, when you remove one of your main barriers to weight loss, it may help you reach your goal faster.
Still, before you start using these pills, it’s important to know what they do. This is the case with any type of drug – prescription or nonprescription – you’re considering. To start, you should know that medications to control appetite will not make you lose weight.
Always Remember: Your Weight Loss is In Your Hands
Regardless of what pills you’re taking, your success in dropping the pounds is dependent on you. You need to make the right changes to what you eat. You will also need to adjust your activity level. More exercise means increased calorie burning. The medications to control appetite will only support you in these other efforts.
For instance, even if you’re taking those pills precisely according to the directions, if all you eat is high calorie foods, you may still gain weight. Your pills are only one part of a complete healthy lifestyle strategy.
What do Medications to Control Appetite Do?
When it all comes down to it, these products help to shrink your hunger. When they’re effective, they help you to feel satisfied after eating a smaller amount of food. Furthermore, they help you to continue feeling satisfied for a longer period of time.
This could mean that a smaller amount of food will carry you through a longer stretch before you get the munchies. Choosing a drug therapy for obesity still needs to be combined with improved eating habits. If you are using a prescription drug, your doctor will usually help to advise you regarding calorie limits and nutrition.
Which Medications to Control Appetite do Doctors Prescribe?
There are currently a handful of different prescription drugs available to help with hunger. These include pills such as phentermine and phendimetrazine among others. They are meant specifically for obesity patients. That said, they may also be prescribed to overweight patients whose weight is putting their health at risk.
At the same time, there are also a number of over the counter options available to dieters who fight with hunger. A doctor can also provide helpful guidance for using those nonprescription medications to control appetite. If prescription drugs are not appropriate for you, bring a list of alternatives to discuss with your physician.
How do Medications to Control Appetite Work?
Prescription drugs meant to shrink hunger pangs and cravings are typically based on stimulants. Drugs such as phentermine and phendimetrazine are powerful stimulants somewhat like amphetamines. They are in a similar drug class.
They work by stimulating the central nervous system, made of the nerves and the brain. This stimulation activates certain parts of the brain involved in the fight or flight response. In this way, medications to control appetite reduce your body’s inclination to feel hunger.
After all, that emergency response by the body is meant to help you to escape a dangerous situation. It gives you the strength and energy to either fight off the danger or run from it. It would be counter-productive if that response allowed you to be distracted by hunger pangs. In that way, medications to control appetite can help to temporarily shrink the appetite.
Why Doesn’t Appetite Suppression Automatically Cause Weight Loss?
Just because these pills can help to decrease your hunger, it doesn’t mean you’ll lose weight. As mentioned earlier, medications to control appetite reduce the inclination to eat. However, it’s up to you to choose the right foods to actually bring on weight loss.
Eating too many calories each day will stop you from being able to lose weight regardless of how much food you ate. If you eat extremely high calorie foods, even if you eat smaller amounts of them, it may be too much.
The trick to medications to control appetite and using them for weight loss is in making great diet decisions. This doesn’t mean that you need to turn into a health nut. However, it will mean that you will need to start choosing more nutrient-dense foods that keep you in your calorie range. Your doctor will help you to build these habits.
What to Eat While Using Medications to Control Appetite
While you’re using these pills, be they prescription or nonprescription, you can technically eat whatever you want. That said, if you truly want to lose weight, it’s up to you to make sure your body is burning more calories than it is taking in. Therefore, your first step will likely be to use a nutrition tracker as part of your weight loss strategy.
These tools are available as apps and as web-based services. They’re exceptionally handy and can help you get the most out of your medications to control appetite. Using nutrition trackers will help you to learn more about the foods you eat.
You’ll discover how many calories foods contain. That said, you’ll also learn more about your ratio of carbohydrates to proteins to fats. This is also an important factor worth considering for your nutrition and weight loss alike.
What Diet Works Best with Medications to Control Appetite?
There isn’t any specific diet that works bets with this kind of medication. Appetite suppression can work with virtually any diet that recommends decreasing food consumption. That said a doctor will typically recommend a healthy, balanced diet with calorie restrictions.
Medications to control appetite are helpful in these cases because they help dieters not to feel hungry even when they’re eating a bit less. When slashing calories, it can be easy to suffer hunger pangs. This is particularly true until you learn how to eat more filling foods that contain fewer calories.
In this vein, many doctors will also recommend that you pay attention to your intake of carbs, proteins and fats. None of those macronutrients are the key to effective weight loss. That said, balancing them properly can help you get the most from medications to control appetite.
This often means boosting protein intake while reducing carbohydrate intake to a certain degree. It may also involve making certain that you’re eating better quality carbohydrates. This way, you’ll receive better nutrition and will feel fuller, longer, regardless of the assistance of the medication. By building these great habits while you’re taking medications to control appetite, you’ll prepare yourself for after you’ve stopped using the drug.
After all, you can’t continue taking the pills forever. Therefore, using your time while you do have the appetite suppressants to learn more about your food will only help you in the long run. You’ll learn how to naturally shrink your hunger. Then, you won’t need medications to control appetite keep the weight off once it’s gone.
When you really think about it, that is the main goal. Losing the weight is only the beginning. Keeping it off is the true purpose of your efforts. It will also mean a far healthier body throughout the rest of your life.
If you have any questions about your medications to control appetite, don’t hesitate to ask your doctor or pharmacist. Each answer will better guide you toward long term weight loss.