Do you know exactly what it means when you see FDA approved diet pills? This is a very specific designation that applies to prescription obesity medications with only one exception.  Therefore, you shouldn’t be looking for this label on non-prescription products except to know not to trust all but one product that claim to have this approval.  More about that later.  For now, let’s get to know what the designation means in the first place.

What is FDA Approval for Obesity Drugs?

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves prescription diet pills only after rigorous testing through various stages. When you are is given a prescription for diet pills, they should inquire whether the FDA approves of them. Before approving a diet pill, the FDA takes three stages of testing. These stages were developed to help best understand how a substance works including both its benefits and drawbacks, before it is permitted for sale to the public.

Stages Required for FDA Approval

The following are the three stages FDA approved diet pills must undergo to get the nod:

• The first stage involves testing the pill on a small group of people in order to find out what the side effects of the pill are. They also check how effective the diet pill is.
• In the second stage, a larger group is picked for purposes of carrying out further tests. The aim is to consider the side-effects that are experienced. At the examination and evaluation point, the experts also determine if the pills are effective for their intended purpose.
• In the third and final stage, the diet pills are tested on a larger population and the results thereof estimated in order to determine the safety and effectiveness of the pills. In addition, FDA assesses the processes involved in the manufacture of the pills to determine their adequacy and integrity. After the approval, the diet pills are considered authentic. The FDA then proceeds to post them in their website as some of the approved diet pills.

Examples of Diet Pills with FDA Approval

Some of the approved diet pills include Xenical, the brand-name version of the drug called Orlistat. This diet pill works by reducing the fat in the users’ body so that the digestive system is in a position to absorb. For the best outcome once a person uses Xenical, they should avoid fatty foods as much as possible. Persons who may not be in a position to control their fat intake should therefore seek alternative diet pills.

The FDA gives the side effects that one is likely to experience when they use the diet pills. One such effect of using Xenical would be frequent bowel movements. These side effects can be irritating but not fatal. For persons who experience extreme side effects on using particular diet pills that have been approved, it is advised that they seek alternative diet pills.

Speaking of Orlistat, a weak version of that drug, called Alli, is the only FDA approved diet pill in the non-prescription category.  Any other supplement or non-prescription pill making that claim from the weight loss category is breaking the law by doing so and should never be trusted.

Other examples of prescription diet pills that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration include Phentermine, Meridia and Bontril.

Approval Doesn’t Mean There Aren’t Any Drawbacks

The approval by FDA does not imply that these diet pills will not have any side effects but that such side effects have been deemed worth the risk when compared to the benefit the user can experience.

The administration body in fact proceeds to indicate the expected side effects of using the diet pills. They also advise that persons with pre-existing conditions should discuss those conditions with their physician before using any of the approved diet pills. This is because the pre-existing conditions may cause the user to experience adverse effects after they use the diet pills approved by the FDA.

The FDA reserves the right to recall a diet pill from the market. This may be necessary once the FDA discovers the use of illegal unsafe substances in the manufacture of the diet pills. They may require a manufacturer to stop manufacturing their diet pills after earlier approving them. Manufacturers who fail to withdraw the diet pills are likely to face criminal charges. With approval of drugs by the Food and Drug Administration organization, one is assured of buying standard and quality diet pills that have undergone thorough examination.