Photo Credit: Fail BlogYou don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that diet pills don’t work. If they did, we’d all look like Carmen Electra and spend our nights partying away with the Zantrex dancers. And yet they sell. So who’s buying? Women apparently.
The other day I went to GNC to buy some Vitamin D3 pills to help with my SAD (no change there, by the way, and I’ve been taking the pills for three weeks now). As usual the store was void of customers but there were two salespeople chatting behind the counter. They descended like vultures as soon as I met their gaze. (Side note: do they get paid on commission? They must.) The big burly dude got to me first.
BBD: Welcome to GNC today!
Me (looking at vitamins): Um, hi.
BBD: We’re here to help you meet all your health goals! (looking me up and down) So what’s your health goal today?
Before I could even begin to answer, BBD finished, incredibly with: Well, I mean, obviously it’s to lose weight.
Steam started to spout from my ears, cartoon-character style, and I glared at him while deliberately picking up the bottle of vitamin D. “Excuse me?”
Realizing he’d made a grave error, he tried to back peddle, “You know, that’s what all women want, right? heh, heh.”
I looked over at his coworker – an older woman with a hairdo so structured that White Rain cried abuse – for help. Or at least an empathetic we-usually-keep-him-locked-in-the-supply-closet eye roll. But instead Crazy Hair Lady nodded, adding, “Oh yes, we have an amazing new line of weight loss products.”
The wicked part of me that I usually try and tamp down around strangers flared up and I decided to play Devil’s advocate. “Oh really? How much weight could I lose?”
“As much as you want!” Ignoring the fact that I don’t need to lose any weight, BBD took my arm and guided me to the wall-o-weight-loss horror. Picking up a box of Hydroxycut, he added, “It’s perfectly safe so you can take this stuff forever!” At $80 a bottle, I can certainly see why they’d want me to!
“How does it work? Is there a ton of caffeine?” (True story: I am so caffeine sensitive that the one time I slammed a Red Bull, I got heart palpitations so badly I thought I was having a heart attack.)
“Oh, no,” CHL chimed in, “It’s stimulant free!”
I showed her the box where it says that one dose delivers over 300 mg of caffeine – and you are supposed to take 3 doses a day. “Well,” BBD huffed, “everybody knows that caffeine is the best legal weight loss supplement. I suppose he was deferring to cocaine on principle.
But is it?
Judging by the sheer number of photos of celebrities carrying coffee cups, it seems like there must be some truth to it. After all, when was the last time you saw an Olsen twin (or Lindsey or Britney) photographed without a Starbucks cup molded into her twee little hand? And caffeine in some form or another is the number one ingredient in almost every single weight-loss supplement on the market, often in heart-fibrillatingly massive doses. Even Biggest Loser trainer Jillian Michaels recommends a caffeine/white willow bark/aspirin cocktail in her book Making the Cut. Hollywood’s opinion is clear.
What the Research Says
There are many studies that show that caffeine does increase metabolism by upping your heart rate causing a thermogenic effect (as is often touted in screaming letters on diet pill packaging) and increased calorie burn. Research has also indicated that it is a mild appetite suppressant. In addition, it has also been found that a dose of caffeine before your workout can help you work up to 30% harder without upping your rate of perceived exertion thereby allowing you to burn more calories.
The problem is that none of these effects have translated into weight loss. The Mayo Clinic debunks the first two points by saying that while caffeine does suppress the apetitite and up metabolism, it doesn’t do it to a significant degree and the effects don’t last long enough to make a difference in a person’s weight. Although they add the caveat that caffeine will produce a temporary decrease in weight due to its diuretic properties.
As for the last point regarding your workout, this is a documented effect. But here’s the kicker: it only works if your body is not already used to caffeine. If you never have the stuff and then slam an energy drink before a big race it can definitely increase your performance. In fact, I know many a runner who swears by this. (Be careful if you try this one out though as caffeine often has the added bonus of loosening one’s bowels.) But the effect is lost if your body is already acclimated to that level of caffeine. In addition, the extra work exerted during your race causes increased hunger afterwards. So while you may reap some performance gains, they probably won’t translate to weight loss.
But not only does caffeine use not correlate with weight loss, it is actually linked to weight gain. Donna Sundblad of the Love To Know blog writes:
Caffeine affects cravings for food because it raises the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol raises heart rate, blood pressure and tells your body to increase its energy stores. This results in the body craving sweets. So if you’re wondering why you snacked on cookies in the afternoon, it could have something to do with that coffee you drank with breakfast.
In addition to increasing cravings for sweets, raised cortisol levels have been linked to increased storage of abdominal fat, a lower immune system and higher blood pressure among other things. Caffeine has also been linked to increased insulin resistence, the scary precursor to diabetes, not to mention the lesser side effects of jitteriness, anxiety, heart palpitations and fragmented thinking.
Conclusions
Not everyone reacts to caffeine the same way. It all depends on your level of sensitivity to caffeine, what dose you take and how often, and for what purpose you are taking it. If you just like your cup of joe in the morning or use it as your secret weapon in that sprint triathlon you are competing in, then more power to you. Just don’t count on it to help you lose weight. And, also, don’t count on the GNC salespeople to know anything.
What are your experiences with caffeine? Hate the stuff? Can’t live without it? And what’s your preffered form of delivery: coffee, tea, pills or energy drinks?
for more of my crazy antics and uncomfortable over-shares!
{ 46 comments… read them below or add one }
I am addicted to caffeine. And I really do mean addicted. If I don’t have any [usually administered by diet sodas and water mix in packets] I am lethargic by 4pm. If I go more than a day or two without the stuff, I tend to get headaches.
It’s that serious. Addictive tendencies run in my family. Alcoholism runs rampant on both my mother and father’s side, so I guess caffeine isn’t such a terrible thing to be addicted to.
I have been drinking coffee since I was five years old [would take it off my mother's night stand in the morning] My parent’s only concern was that the caffeine might stint my growth and they’d end up with some tiny kid. Didn’t happen. I’m a 6’1″ “little” lady. :]
Great article. I usually don’t comment but just had to throw in my two cents. :]
After learning more about caffeine recently, I decided to try to limit my intake. High caffeine intake can result in something that looks like generalized anxiety disorder, and I don’t think I need any artificially-induced anxiety in my life on top of the real stuff! About a day or two in, I got the headaches (the kind that are not relieved with typical over the counter meds) and definitely felt lethargic, but in a way where I would normally just think I hadn’t slept long enough…and where I would normally feel a lot better after a 16oz Diet Coke.
I’m feeling better now, and even though caffeine isn’t the worst thing to be dependent on, it definitely worried me when I got such classic withdrawal symptoms! So I’m trying to keep it to a minimum. Dark chocolate and a chai latte are still allowed every once in awhile though…can’t deprive yourself of everything
I can’t really say that its affected my weight one way or the other, but I did have some water retention the first few days.
I’m also glad that I’ll be a lot less tolerant to caffeine’s effects now…so if I ever do really need a pick-me-up in a pinch, it’ll be there.
I’ve been drinking coffee since I was 12, and am addicted in what I consider a positive manner. But, no wonder weight loss pills never worked for me, as I’m sure my tolerance was way over what they were dishing out.
I do occassionally use coffee purposefully for it’s diuretic effects after a night of heavy eating. I will only drink coffee the next morning until I…..you know. Instant decrease in weight and bloating.
Coffee, thick and black. Specialty, exotic blends are my favorite, but Folger’s is what I grew up on.
I can’t even fathom the idiocy of a person who would look at you and think you would need to lose weight.
I have the exact same reaction to Red Bull, I thought I was dying and was this close to writing a note to my family if I died. It was crazy scary.
Dude, that picture you posted, I’ve been trying to find that everywhere. I saw that on myspace and paused thinking, “Wait a sec, she’s not fat, she’s pregnant!” I’m not sure whether to laugh or be horrified.
When I was pregnant, my doctor told me to drink a Coke when I got headaches instead of using painkillers. Long story short, I started drinking it regularly. When I started boot camp they told me I would have to do extra pushups if I drank any kind of carbonated soda especially ones with caffeine. I stopped. I went three months without it, and I found I was more alert during the day, and I actually had more energy. When I finally broke down and drank a Diet Coke, I found that I was incredibly sluggish during my workout. I couldn’t muster up as much energy as usual. I am convinced it was because of the caffeine. While caffeine can offer a temporary pick me up, that is if you don’t drink it regularly, like any other drug, it will cause a slump when it wears off. Does it affect my weight? Yes! I reach my peak performace level during my workout! I guess I could drink it right before my workout, but I’d be belching and feel bloated. Who wants that?
I meant, I CAN’T reach my peak performance durning my workout. Sorry, I’m a tired mom.
I love coffee. However, fibrocycstic breasts run in my family, and caffeine is a huge trigger for lumps to form. So I try to keep it down to a dull roar with the caffeine.
RE: Vitamin D. The pill form supplements don’t work. I live in Seattle, where some estimates say that as many as 80% of the population is significantly low on Vitamin D. I was tested a year ago, and my levels were *undetectable*! My doctor prescribed liquid D3, saying that the pills are simply not potent enough to boost your blood levels of D.
The liquid I take is available in any number of online vitamin places, but I get it from Emerson Ecologics, as I found it there first and their prices are reasonable.
It's 2,000 IU per drop, and the standard ramp-up to boost low levels is 50 drops the first day (100,000 IU – yes this is VERY high, but it's critical to getting your levels up) followed by 2 days of 10 drops per day, and 10 days of 1 drop per day. Repeat the cycle two more times, for a total of six weeks on the cycle.
Once the six weeks is up, have your blood levels re-tested and continue to take 1 drop a day ongoing. You may need to redo the "burst" dose at this time of year every year in order to prepare for winter. You will notice a difference in your sleep, as well as in your energy levels, in three days.
Hope this is useful. Feel free to contact me through my blog if I can be of any help at all. I'd be happy to fax or scan & email you the official info sheet given to me by my doctor. It is from one of the medical journals and cites references. I'll pull it from my files to send if you want it.
I never drank coffee till 1.5 years ago after having done CrossFit for awhile. I heard stories about how it boosted performance and helped reduce hunger (I suffer from stress eating). It did help wake me up in the mornings to exercise and it reduced hunger but didn’t get rid of the stress cravings.
About eight months ago I stopped doing CrossFit because I suspected it was stressing out my body too much – had enough stress from law school – and four months ago I stopped drinking caffeine. The stress cravings still come and go but are not as severe now. I don’t think I can attribute this to dropping caffeine, but I think it was part of a combination of things that helped.
I only drink coffee when I’m trying to lose weight. I find it really surpresses my appetite. I try to limit myself to three strong cups a day otherwise I start having anxiety problems.
GNC salespeople can stick their “helpful” advice! That’s so irresponisble. And keep on with the pills, any supplements I’ve taken usually take 4-6 weeks before they start working. Really hope they help! Have you ever tried 5-HTP? I found them really useful in the past.
TA x
Ok, first of all – OMG!! I can’t believe they (no.1) TOLD you you needed to lose weight and (no.2) tried to convince you to spend 100s of $ on pills to achieve this! I really hope they’re on commission, otherwise they’re just disturbed!!
I’m not sure about caffeine as a weight loss tool. I’m really sensitive to the effects of it too. Despite drinking tea all my life (it’s almost illegal to avoid it here in Ireland!), all it takes is for me to have one cappuccino or latte with a teaspoon of sugar and I’m high as a kite! (The sugar possibly has an added effect too seeing as I don’t use it in my tea) And apologies if this is TMI but I can concur on the bowel loosening effects…*ahem*.
)
I love love love my morning coffee routine. We usually make it at home, but there is nothing like walking into a coffee shop and inhaling that sweet aroma. The first thing I do upon rising is stagger over to the coffee pot and flip the switch. I try to limit myself to one cup in the morning…I guess I should mention my cup is about 20 oz. I also fill it with half and half. Basically, I wake up to coffee flavored half and half every morning. Yum!
I too use the LiquiD3 drops from Emerson. I would talk to a doctor about your individual dosage. My doc had me on 6 drops a day and then retested my levels. Now, I just take 2. Feeling much better!
Hi there,
Thanks for quoting me. My own experience with caffeine is that I’ve weaned myself from it as a daily “drug”. when drinking coffee daily, even as little as two cups a day, if I try to quit cold turkey I experience migraine headaches and nausea. Not a pleasant experience.
Instead, I gradually decreases how much coffee I drank. The last two days of the weaning process I drank 1/4 cupt if I felt a headache coming on. I’ve replaced coffee with herbal tea. It took some getting used to, and I do allow myself a cup of coffee now and then, but I try not to do that two days in a row.
I’ve lost about 12 pounds since then. Of course that isn’t just attributed to eliminating caffeine. I’ve made changes in my diet too.
Donna Sundblad
When I used to take medicine for my ADHD I cut out the caffeine because it made me feel jittery. Now that I don’t take it anymore I enjoy one cup of coffee every morning, and it makes me feel calm. I don’t drink any other caffeine during the day though. And my energy is usually pretty good.
That GNC experience is just surreal. Wow.
I pretty much live for my morning cup of coffee – which I am blissfully savoring right now – but otherwise I try to limit caffeine intake… and GNC’s “helpful” employees.
I’m on my second cup of coffee right now. I estimate I’ll have another cup and a half before I leave for work. Made in a french press, so it’s extra strong, extra acidic, and extra caffeinated. I love it!
We have actual caffeine in the lab (powdered chemical kind). I use it routinely to cause DNA damage and kill cells! The bottle has a giant TOXIC sign on it, and warns us not to ingest it. Which we all find really funny because we’re grad students and caffeine is it’s own food group to grad students. (For clarity, the amount of caffeine in coffee/sodas/red bull is way less than the concentration I use in my experiments.)
Ummmmm Isnt’ that photo of a woman pregnant and then not pregnant? Give me a break!!!!
I drink coffee and tea.
And also know more about supplementation and uses for protein powder than the employees at GNC (where I spent a 10 minute conversation with the salesperson explaining that I’m sure I DON’T need their multivitamin, and having her grill me about uses for the protein powders).
What, are they training all salespersons to be like car dealerships?? Soon they will meet you at the curb, Charlotte!
I have a 1/4 cup of coffee in the AM before running. Except on rare occasions, that’s it.
There was a time, when I was having 4-5 cups a day. I noticed one day that it was out of boredom, and I just stopped the behavior.
I am going to boycott GNC simply based on that story….what ignorant jerks!
I am addicted to Diet Cokes from McDonald’s = heaven in a cup. I have one or two large cups a day.
I am trying to get better and limit myself, not just because of the caffeine, but because of the artificial sweetners. But, hey, if that’s my only addiction…I guess it’s not THAT bad??
I love reading the information you post!
Coffee is my friend. My hot creamy friend (that sounds a little pervy, huh?).
I have two cups every morning, but the hubs and I are wimps and don’t like it strong, so the amount of caffeine we get is prolly on the low-ish side.
I’ve tried drinking tea, but it just doesn’t do it for me like the cuppa java does.
I would have hauled off and slapped the both of them.
I can’t believe the horrible people you are constantly meeting who constantly put their foot in their mouth around you (like the too bulky comment or the helpful protein bar lady.) Ridiculous!
I’m pretty caffeine free. I don’t like hot drinks so coffee and tea are out. The occassional diet coke doesn’t really hit me. I do feel strange heart fluttering when I drink an iced cap in the summer though. Should try that before I run next time I guess!
I am absolutely anti-caffeine, I am known to call the stuff evil. I wasn’t too fond of it even before my beahavioural neuroscience course where we studied drugs and addiction and I learned exactly what caffeine does to your brain..if caffeine was discovered tomorrow it would be classified an illegal drug, but it’s one of those situations where it’s been around forever so no one is much bothered by it. It honestly freaks me that it is in so many things people normally injest, especially children!
So needless to say I never drink anything with caffeine in it. Once in a weak moment and having a deadline to meet I caved and figured maybe I would try a cup of coffee because I was so fatigued and needed to concentrate. BAD IDEA! I got so stoned it was unreal! I was spacey and felt soo peculiar. My best friend called and after talking to me for 5 minutes she said she was coming to get me. I spent the 20 min car ride to her house talking about my hands. When we got there I tried to shift a cushion on the couch so I could sit and couldn’t keep my balance and fell over. She only caught it out of the corner of her eye and thought her b/f must have pushed me and proceeded to tell him off.
Long story short, my own great caffeine experiment was definitely memorable. Yes, eventually I was able to concetrate, but it took over 5 hours of feeling stoned, a big meal, and a headache before I was able to get any work done. Definitely not worth it!
I’ve never been a coffee drinker but diet sodas were my drug of choice. I stopped drinking soda about 2 months ago so my caffeine levels have dropped dramatically. I drink a lot of green tea but the caffeine content in that is almost nothing compared to diet drinks.
I’m only sensitive to massive repeated doses of caffeine. I used to work a night job and had to take NoDoz a few times. After the second dose, I felt so weird that I thought I was going to have to go to the hospital.
When I’m doing long runs, I do try to include a few fuel sources that contain caffeine and I definitely notice a performance boost from them.
I love coffee. I try to only drink it in the mornings though. I don’t think a morning cup of coffee is going to hurt me, but I do know overdoing caffeine is bad.
I do find that a warm beverage can cure the munchies though. So in the evenings I will sometimes have a cup of decaf, or some tea, if I’m feeling like I want something but I know I don’t need food.
What a surreal experience…I think I would have just walked out. You should write a nasty letter to their corporate offices! At the very least, maybe they’d give you some free stuff!
Funny story – I quit caffeine completely on accident. When I started trying to lose weight last year I made a lot of beverage changes. I started drinking tea in the mornings from our Flavia machine (which ended up being decaf). I stopped drinking most diet soda except as an occasional “treat”. I find since I’ve given it up, if I get the afternoon munchies at work, all it takes is about 1/3 of a soda to quell it. Basically, I drank water all day.
One day, I went out to lunch and got some yummy green ice tea. I was seriously bouncing off the walls the rest of the day. Off ONE. That’s the day I realized I just can’t have caffeine anymore. Just 2 years ago, I woke up with an energy drink every morning and slurped coffee and soda all day.
Now, the only time I have caffeine is when I’m out at a bar in my mixed drinks. And if I have a few, I usually end up waking up the next day with a huge caffeine buzz (and then crash in the afternoon). If only they would regularly stock diet sprite…
I don’t know how ANYONE could think you were in GNC for a weight-loss solution. Was he blind? Was he a meat head and sexist to boot? Seriously, that is the most ignorant sales pitch I’ve ever heard of.
As for caffeine – I always said I wouldn’t start drinking coffee until 3rd year University. I’m there now and I’m still finding excuses not to drink it. Just doesn’t taste good to me.
I can’t believe that guy in the store, how you didn’t resotr to violence I’ll never.
I’m slightly sensitive to caffine so tend to avoid it.. anymore than one cup fo coffee a day and I’m climbing the walls.
CP x
i drink coffee seasonally and oddly, under stress. it’s my comfort in a cup. Chicago gets cold and when i need an excuse to leave work or the apartment to get outside for at least 10 minutes in the cold/wind, i’ll buy a coffee.
However, i do try to limit total caffeine intake. i often try to do periods of no caffeine or decaf only and then up to half-caf. Inevitably, I’ll creep back up to full caffeine when I’m stressed and getting less sleep….but, I always make it back. Any type of addiction scares me and even though this is probably my only real vice –those caffeine headaches make me feel out of control.
anyway, i’ve read on a lot of fitness blogs that people swear by caffeine stacking before weight lifting. but, again–scary. i’d rather rely on a good night’s sleep and good nutrition.
I’m very sensitive to caffeine… if I were to have it a few days in a row, then didn’t have it, I’d get a killer headache. And it definitely affects my anxiety (for the worse). So I try to avoid it. If I want caffeine, I’ll have some decaf coffee (since there is a bit of caffeine even in that) or some soda.
It doesn’t really wake me up much. I just like the flavor of stuff that comes with it (like chai, mmmmm, or cherry coke).
Heh, that’s kind of funny. I don’t like coffee and I hate energy drinks and energy bars. I drink loads of tea, but it can be caffeinated or decaffeinated; doesn’t matter too much. I think there’s a place for caffeine- but too much is a bad thing!
WAIT! What happened to the rest of the story? I was loving that part!
Also – girl in the picture? PREGNANT, not fat. God almighty, weight loss ads are stupid. Either that or they think WE are.
And I LOVE coffee, but I try to stick to decaf, mostly so that on days when I’m REALLY tired and drink regular, it WORKS.
Back to the story: a friend of mine, who was in recovery for anorexia had the same experience in a GNC. While I stood there speechless, she (never at a loss for words) looked coldly at the woman and responded, “Really? You think those supplements will work? Because I found that my ANOREXIA was pretty damn good at making me skinny. Do you think they’ll work better than that? What if I combined the two? You know, anorexia plus diet pills? How about that? Would that work better?” She went on like that for several minutes, while the saleswoman tried to fall through the floor.
I thought I would die laughing.
Caffiene? I can’t tolerate it. I’m extremely sensitive to it. It’s also simply the worst of all stimulants, legal or otherwise. It’s a crappy high followed by a brutal crash. Why?
I’m not going to get into the merits of stimulants here. I don’t think they are useful or even safe for use with exercise. Want a great way to over stress your cardiovascular system? Caffeine is great for that.
There are other natural stimulants that have less adverse side effects, but I still don’t think anyone should take them in huge quantities and then work out. It’s dangerous, and that’s why we get bans on supplements. Just because it’s in pill form doesn’t mean you can eat them like candy. Ephedra is only a few molecular bonds away from speed. These are powerful chemicals, and the effects should be fully understood by those using them.
Stimulants have their place, but that’s definitely not the weight room.
Thank you for giving us the facts on this issue. As for the GNC- I cannot believe that guy said that to you (of all people). And worse, the lady said it was stimulant free, when the label clearly showed it was full of caffeine!
Anyway, I rarely have any kind of caffeine (although I love the smell of coffee). Every now and then I’ll have a soda, but it’s less than once a month, and I usually don’t even drink a full can.
A few years back, I switched to a much earlier work schedule, and was working four 10-hour shifts. At first I was drinking a ton of soda in the morning to stay awake, and realized it was a lot of calories. So I bought some diet pills with caffeine in them. They helped me to be more alert, and I did lose a little weight (maybe 5 lbs) and maintained it while I was taking the pills.
However, it was shortly after I started the pills that I went through a period of severe anxiety, and I’m sure the caffeine was not helping my situation (there were other issues at the root of my anxiety- I’m not totally blaming the caffeine). Plus, there are types of pills I’ve tried that I can feel my heart racing- not a good feeling. And I hate withdrawal headaches, so that’s why I usually stay away.
Oh my God! Those GNC people are awful! How dare that guy say that to you? He must be too stupid from steroids and the hairspray women clearly has killed her brain cells using that white Rain.
I like caffeine, used be addicted, like 1000mg’s a day. 5 years ago I quite cold turkey for Lent (I was 17 and didn’t know any better)I had awful withdrawal for 3 days I had to have friends take note for me in school…but within 3 weeks I didn’t miss the stuff.
Now I’m an occasional drinker.
PS. about the SAD, I’ve had that before and I found that B vitamins worked for me. just a suggestion since you’re still not feeling better.
My abs are sore from laughing. guess that means I can skip my crunches tonight!
Sounds like the staff @ GNC need to learn some soft skills & need to be trained on their products. It's kind of alarming that these people are working in this type of store and lack product knowledge.
I wish weight loss pills could be taken off of the market completely. If you believe a pill alone will make you lose weight without side effects or take any tolls on your health, you might as well believe in Santa Claus.
You can swallow a pill and rid yourself of a head ache. Unfortunately, it's not the same for weight loss. I pity the people who do buy into this. There is no quick fix. ARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!!
Thanks for bringing up the caffeine topic. I'm an addict. Do not pass go until I've had a cup of coffee. I've never thought about it as having any effect on my weight loss. For me, it's a mood enhancer.
As for BBD & CHL, I'd be tempted to have a chat with their manager.
Heahter mcd and I were separated at birth, lol! I also love my morning coffee, and I try to keep my caffeine intake to just that cup. I also LOVE the creamer!
Sometimes I sneak a diet soda, but I’m trying to eliminate that. (My brother just gave up Diet Coke: he would drink up to 12 cans a day, yikes!)
I just turned 39 a couple of mo nths ago, and I’ve put on quite a bit of weight in the past couple of years. I’m trying to get the weight off, so maybe cutting the diet soda (along with other dietary changes) will help.
Okay, little trivia here, I used to work for the company that manufactures Zantrex… Yeah… Moving right along…
Caffeine makes me really hyper, I am one of those people… If I drink too much diet coke, I better be on the treadmill shortly thereafter, because otherwise, I will be bouncing off the walls talking really fast. In that regard, it does give me a boost if I take caffeine shortly before working out.
AND WHO WOULD ASK IF YOU ARE TRYING TO LOSE WEIGHT????
BWAHAHAHA! I wanted to get in on the latest weight loss bet pool w/ my friends, but they said I was a cheater at 9mos pregnant and couldn’t play along.
Here’s one of me before/after my amazing 30lb weight loss in 30 hours, no pills or caffeine needed!
http://www.dsplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=5467
I can’t believe they said that stuff to you! I used to work at a health food store and while they want you to make the customers think you care about their well-being, they really only care about making money. I guess that even means telling someone to buy diet pills even when they clearly don’t need them! As far as caffeine, I’m a total diet pepsi, diet coke addict. I’ve tried quitting but as my friend once said when I told her I was trying to quit, “I’ve quit trying to quit”. I think all the studies out there are pretty much useless because for every study that says something is bad, is another study saying the same thing is good. I think the celebrities drink coffee instead of eating food.
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I know that my sample size was ridiculously small, but in Jr. High or maybe High school, I did a science fair project on the effects of caffeine on my swim team. We all raced without drinking anything, after drinking caffeine right before a race and there was a control group. I dont remember all the details but it was pretty convincing that even just one or two sodas right before a sprint race would slow you down BUT it didn’t really matter if it had caffeine or not. For this reason I went off carbination for 5 years and swam the best I ever have. When I had to drink some, it would sting my throat and felt so unatural. I think both caffeine and carbination should be restricted by serious athletes.
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Ruth
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Caffeine Pills -Effects, Withdrawal and Addiction
Caffeine pills are used worldwide as weight loss remedies and as stimulant drugs. Caffeine pills are the latest rage in the health and fitness industry as well, and they are used extensively as they are known to improve alertness and boost energy in human beings.
Caffeine pills also have side effects, just like any other type of medication, such as increased heart palpitations, headaches, restlessness, insomnia, psychomotor agitation, depression, irritability, disorientation, lack of judgement, peptic ulcers, loss of social inhibition, respiratory alkalosis, hallucinations, erosive esophagitis, etc.
If you ignore the headaches, a major symptom of caffeine withdrawal, that will just make you more tempted to return to the full-caffeine routine, so I recommend you to use pain relievers instead. Just be aware that some pain relievers, like Excedrin, contain caffeine, so you must include that when figuring out your daily caffeine intake! Reducing your consumption of caffeine gradually will also minimize the risk of suffering caffeine withdrawal.
Some people don´t even think about the word “addiction” when they refer to caffeine. As a matter of fact, caffeine is an addictive drug and Caffeine Addiction is a reality in our world that must be treated just like any other addiction.
Some other people frequently say they are "addicted" to caffeine in much the same way they say they are "addicted" to shopping, working or television, and the term "addiction" actually refers to a strong dependence on a drug characterised by severe withdrawal symptoms, tolerance to a given dose and the loss of control or the need to consume more and more of the substance at any cost.
You can find more info at: http://yourcaffeineaddiction.com/