Dubai: There are dozens of ways to lose weight but compromising on your health should not be one of them, warn health experts.
In a statement issued on Monday, Dubai Municipality announced that it is cracking down on health supplements that offer fast weight loss, especially those that contain sibutramine and phenolphatlein as they have been banned since 2011.
An official at the Consumer Product Safety Section of the Public Health and Safety Department is urging residents not to use certain supplements that are marketed with false promises, and on sale without any proper medical supervision.
“We warn residents not to use medicines such as Paiyoji Plus, Natural Max, Japan Rapid weight Loss, Super Slim and Celerite Slimming Capsules [as they contain] banned chemicals including sibutramine and phenolphthalein as its ingredients,” said a municipal official. Certain types of tea have also been banned as they were also found to contain sibutramine.
As part of its crackdown, Dubai Municipality carried out 2,173 inspections including 244 in the free zone during 2014, while 4,011 inspections were carried out in shops in 2013.
The official also explained that the warning was made after it came to their attention that residents continue to buy such unregistered types of supplements.
“We carry out inspections to ensure that only approved an registered healthy products are available here,” he said. “But despite our efforts, promoters of these unhealthy products seem to be successful in convincing consumers to buy their products.”
Anita Jonbert, a sports nutritionist and registered holistic nutritionist, explained that sibutramine can cause cardiovascular disease and stroke, in addition to headaches, dizziness, depression and sleepless nights. Phenolphatlein is used as a laxative and can cause damage to the gastrointestinal system and kidneys, and also skin rash.
“I do not believe in any magic pills,” said Jonbert. “The biggest problem with these weight loss supplements are that they cause severe side-effects and damage our health in the long run.
“They also always come with a low-calorie diet and the problem with that is when people stop taking it, and nobody in this world can follow a fad diet forever, they gain all the weight back and even more, because they just go back to their bad eating habits. The best way to lose weight and keep it off is to go back to eating natural whole foods full of nutrients.”
Shareefa, a 32-year-old Emirati, used to buy such banned goods online directly from a factory in China as she was unable to find them in the local market. “I read about the dangers of such quick-fix diet pills but never took them seriously until it was too late,” she said. “At first, I lost a few kilos but after I stopped taking the pills, I gained about seven more kilos in one month. It took almost six months of exercise to lose the excess weight, and I would never recommend anyone to take such easy options.”
