By Lata Jha:
You would think you could finally give that treadmill a rest. A new dietary supplement containing an extract from raw green coffee beans is currently the hottest diet product in the United States. Proponents argue that research shows the nutrient to be both safe and effective and that banning the natural compound would be akin to banning vitamins.
This is not without controversy, though.
Thanks to word-of-mouth marketing, the compound, called green coffee bean extract is one of the most popular diet products in America today. Apparently, it causes weight loss significant enough to be greatly abused by non-dieters. Some people argue that it may, in fact, cause too much of a weight reduction to be offered over-the-counter and therefore should be regulated like Xenical and other prescription diet aids. Indeed, published peer-reviewed research shows an average weight loss of 10 percent of a person’s bodyweight within just 10 weeks, an effect greater than most prescription diet pills, and therefore, immediately worrisome.
This understandably has some weight-management experts getting perturbed. They fear that the new super slimmer may, in fact, cause way too much weight loss and may be abused by people who have no business taking it, in the first place. Indeed, a new study from researchers at Norway’s Department of Public Health, states that nearly one-quarter (23%) of normal-weight individuals consider themselves overweight. These people were therefore four times more likely to misuse diet aids in an irrational attempt to lose weight.
Weight-management experts, as well as the Norwegian researchers, point out that the slimming aid should only be used by overweight individuals, not self obsessed attention seekers, and along with healthy eating habits and regular physical activity.
One must also be cautious and know that a high percentage of green coffee bean supplements advertised online contain a host of fillers and added ingredients like caffeine, which one might not want. Also to keep in mind is the fact that a lot of companies selling green coffee bean extract online sneakily enroll consumers into controversial, not to mention, annoying automatic-reship programs, which can be a real hassle to get out of.
Thus, if read deeper, the diet pill reeks of same basic lessons of life. That weight, like everything else, can only be controlled through diligence and effort. Anything that seems too god to be true usually is so. As consumers and individuals, we should go beyond the luring face value of things.