Prescription weight loss drugs are taken only if under the supervision of a doctor who prescribed them as drug-based medical treatment of a health disorder. They are usually administered to address obesity, since an overweight condition often leads to serious health problems like hypertension and diabetes.
In including weight reduction as part of a medical treatment, doctors also require patients to engage in physical exercises, and avoid certain types of food. Additionally, a change of lifestyle will also be required if it’s vital to the achievement of a weight loss goal; especially if obesity is the main cause of a health problem. Doctors only prescribe FDA-Approved weight loss drugs and that they are safe to take in combination with other medications.
Why Doctors Do Not Recommend Weight Loss Supplements?
Supplements on the other hand, do not require medical prescriptions. Mainly because their formulation use only ingredients sourced or extracted from natural products to supplement the intakes of vitamins, minerals and other botanical ingredients that can help improve a person’s body physically and/or physiologically. While supplements do not require FDA approval, they are registered with the agency before they are cleared for distribution and sale in markets.
Since most weight loss supplements or fat burners are not FDA approved, it would be safer for a person to first consult with a doctor. The latter will ask questions and check a consulting patient’s medical history, as well as examine the patient to make sure that there is no undiagnosed medical problem. In doing so, a doctor will be able to determine if a weight loss supplement is safe to take; or if a prescription weight loss drug is the more appropriate solution.
Nonetheless, even if a doctor gives a person a clean bill of health, one should still make a careful assessment of the weight loss or fat burner supplement to take. Fake fat burners as well as poor quality weight loss supplements proliferate in markets, and are not as effective as those that have garnered genuine word of mouth recommendations.
Checkout reviews and related contents about the ingredients, to understand what makes a fat burner work effectively. Best female supplements found here at this publication have been personally reviewed and evaluated accordingly by the content editor.
To Whom and When Do Doctors Prescribe Weight Loss Drugs?
Generally, doctors prescribe weight loss drugs to adults with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of more than 30 as it is deemed as the index for obesity; and especially if physical exercise and dieting do not result in critical weight reduction improvements. Weight loss drugs are also prescribed to patients with serious medical problems whose BMI is over 27
When prescribing a weight loss drug, doctors have the responsibility to discuss to the patient, the drug’s potential side effects and other health challenges. While it is normal for weight-loss medicines to have some side effects, the administering physician will monitor if such side effects lessen with time because there have been rare and serious adverse cases. If the prescribed drug has not caused any serious side effects and has assisted in achieving weight reduction goals toward improving health conditions, the doctor will continue to prescribe the drug.
More About Prescription Weight Loss Drugs
Prescription weight loss drugs are significantly more effective when paired with health-improving modifications in lifestyle as opposed to being taken alone, usually up to 12 weeks. Ideally, after a year of supervised weight loss and medical treatment, a weight reduction of 3% to 7% can be achieved. In addition, other medical benefits like the lowering of triglyceride levels, blood pressure, and blood sugar.will help a patient sustain an improved weight for a long term.
The most common FDA-Approved weight loss drugs that doctors recommend for long-term use are: Bupropion-naltrexone (Contrave), Liraglutide (Saxenda), Orlistat (Xenical) and Phentermine-topiramate (Qsymia). Keep in mind though that these are drugs and therefore should not be abused; or used over and beyond the term prescribed by the doctor since they can lead to serious side effects.