What Are the Dangers of Diet Pill Abuse?
Our culture’s obsession with physical appearance drives the abuse of diet pills — both prescription and over-the-counter — particularly among women in their teens and early 20s. Anorexic young women swallow diet pills in an effort to achieve an unhealthy thinness. When the normal dosage loses effectiveness as the body acclimates to the stimulants in the drug, they increase the number of pills they take. Some women also take more pills than prescribed in the belief that a higher dose will make them thinner faster. A vicious cycle begins as these women become physically and emotionally dependent on these drugs. They don’t realize that diet pills can be extremely dangerous even when not abused.
Diet pills can be addictive. They contain powerful stimulants that affect the central nervous system. They can cause increased heart rate, dizziness, jitteriness, headaches, high blood pressure, nausea, anxiety, irritability, insomnia, diarrhea, palpitations, breathing problems, blurred vision, chest pains and fatigue. Some diet pill ingredients can cause hallucinations, convulsions, seizures, stroke and heart attack. Probably the most dangerous ingredient found in many diet pills is Ephedrine which has been linked to deaths from heart attacks, seizures and strokes.
People who take diet pills often ignore their doctor’s instructions and the manufacturer’s warnings about proper dosage and how long the drugs can be taken. Many diet pills warn against continuing use past three months. Use beyond three months puts you at risk for developing Primary Pulmonary Hypertension, a rare but fatal lung disease with a life expectancy of less than three years.
Combining diet pills with other prescriptions drugs or alcohol can be a deadly combination. Among 12- to 17-year-olds, girls are more likely than boys to abuse prescription drugs. They are also among the group most at risk for anorexia. These young women often begin an unhealthy journey into anorexia by taking diet pills. Because teen bodies do not respond to drugs in the same way as adult bodies, diet pills can cause much stronger reactions in teens. Potential side effects can be much stronger and even life-threatening. When mixed with other drugs, diet pills may either weaken or negate the effect of those drugs or enhance it to a dangerous degree.
Recovery from an addiction to diet pills must also address the body image issues that drive the drug abuse. Depression, anxiety, trauma and other contributing factors may complicate treatment and recovery. A drug rehabilitation treatment facility that specializes in dual diagnosis offers the best chance for successful recovery.
