The Dark Truth about Weight Loss Supplements | Dhruv Rathee

Hello friends! According to the recently released Lancet Global Health Report, 50% of Indians in the country are physically unfit. The World Health Organization says that every person should do at least 2.5-3 hours of moderate exercise per week, which is not being done by half of the population in our country. Out of the 195 countries in the world, India is the 12th worst country in this regard. Because of this, millions of people in the country suffer unhealthy weight gain, and many of these people try to take shortcuts to lose weight.

Some drink green tea every day, some drink apple cider vinegar, and some try one weight loss supplement after another. In today’s video, let’s find out the truth behind these. Should you take these supplements? If yes, then which ones? Which is the magical weight loss supplement that will reduce your weight overnight?

Junk food refers to any food that has a lot of sugar, salt, or fat. These are harmful to our health. But do you know the monetary value of junk food? According to Fortune Business Insights 2020, the global market size of this junk food industry is $862 billion. According to another research firm, Straits, the global market size of this industry in 2022 was $731 billion. It is because of this junk food that obesity has now become a global pandemic. Crony capitalism is the real reason for the growth of this industry globally.

On the one hand, it creates this crisis, and on the other hand, it offers ‘solutions.’ First, feed people junk food to make money, and when people suffer from obesity because of it, they sell weight loss products to earn money. According to Research from Facts and Factors, the market size of the global weight loss and weight management industry is $224 billion as of 2021. According to MarketResearch.biz, in 2022, the market size was $260 billion. In this report, three categories of the weight loss industry were considered: First, diet, which includes supplements and products for consumption, second, fitness equipment and surgical equipment, and third, services, that include fitness centers, gyms, and online weight loss programs.

It might sound like a good industry that would have a positive impact on the world if more and more people become fit. But a large portion of this weight loss industry is made up of weight loss products. The so-called ‘weight loss products.’ They claim that they will magically reduce your weight. Such products advertise that you won’t need to exercise, and you can keep eating junk food. Because of their magical nutrition, you need to consume only a spoonful of it and your fat will keep burning overnight. Sometimes it will be in the form of a syrup, sometimes it will be weight loss pills, sometimes it will be capsules, and sometimes it may be called Tummy Tea, so that your belly fat is reduced. Some sell apple cider vinegar, and some sell herbal nutritious shakes.

These ads may even claim that their products have been ‘clinically proven’ and are ‘backed by science.’ Some products will claim to increase your leptin hormone, which will signal to your brain that you don’t need to eat anymore. These products will claim that they will reduce the absorption of fats. Your metabolism will increase, your gut health will improve, and fat burning will be more efficient in your body. If you have ever seen these ads, it might have sounded quite convincing. They use scientific-sounding words. These are available in the form of tablets and capsules as well and are available in pharmaceutical stores too.

If a pharmacy sells such a product, we get convinced even faster. But the biggest difference between real medicines and such products is that real medicines are categorized as Medical Drugs and these products are classified as Dietary Supplements. For a product to be classified as a Medical Drug, it needs to pass many rounds of trials and tests. There are numerous regulatory checks. But there aren’t as many rules to be a Dietary Supplement. Often these companies show their own studies and rely on that research to prove that their product is safe and efficient. The sample size of these studies is often very small and often, the studies are not done scientifically.

Not only that, but sometimes they mock science. Like there is a category of supplements that are sold as “Leptin Supplement for Weight Loss.” This sounds quite sophisticated. If you look up Leptin on Google, you will find that Leptin is a hormone that is present in our fat cells. It tells our brain whether you need to eat more or not. It controls your hunger. If the leptin level is high, the brain is told that your body has sufficient fat stores so you need to eat more. But if the Leptin levels are low, the brain thinks that the fat stores in your body are low, and you need to eat more.

If this is all you know about Leptin, it will make sense that since these supplements contain leptin, and if it increases the leptin levels of your body, it will signal to your brain that the fat levels of the body are very high, so the tendency to feel hungry will automatically decrease and you will eat less, leading to weight loss. But now let me tell you something that these companies will not tell you. The obese people, people fatter than a specified limit, their body fat is already quite high.

This means that leptin level is already quite high in their body. So, the brain should already get this signal, they don’t need to eat anymore. But they still keep on eating, they keep feeling hungry. Why is this? This is because the body develops Leptin Resistance. Constantly high leptin levels over a long time, the signals stop reaching the brain. The brain feels that it needs to keep eating more. The fat stores are insufficient, and so, the person keeps eating more. So in such cases, to lose weight, taking a leptin supplement, does it make any sense? It won’t affect your body.

The next category for weight loss is the Fat Trappers. They are also called Fat Binders. These products contain a chemical called Chitosan. It is made from powdered shells of creatures like shrimps, crabs, and shellfish. The shells of crabs are crushed and powdered to produce this chemical. When you consume it, it sticks to the fat molecules in your body, which increases the size of these fat molecules. And your pancreatic enzymes cannot break down these fat molecules.

As a result, the fat molecules are not digested by your body, and as undigested fat, they pass through your body and are then excreted. This sounds like a convincing scientific way, a chemical sticking to our fat molecules, making the fat molecules indigestible, thus leading to no weight gain. But there is one tiny problem here.

If Chitosan is preventing the fat molecules from being digested, then the body won’t be able to absorb the fat-soluble nutrients either. Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, many disease-fighting phytochemicals found in fruits and vegetables, our body won’t be able to digest these good nutrients either. Not only that, but its positive impact on weight loss is insignificant. According to some studies, you won’t even notice it.

The third category of weight loss supplements is Fat Burners. When you hear the phrase ‘fat burner’ you will often imagine a drilling machine burning the fat deposits of the body. But actually, the reason behind their effectiveness is said to be Caffeine. Caffeine is the same substance found in coffee. And some research suggests that caffeine stimulates our nervous system, which sends a direct signal to the fat cells to break down the fat. Studies also show that caffeine increases our RMR, our Resting Metabolic Rate.

Green coffee beans, which are the unroasted coffee beans, contain high levels of chlorogenic acid, giving us anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. There’s no doubt about it, that it is a good thing for the body. But the point here is that if we get the same caffeine from drinking a cup of coffee, then why should we take these weight loss supplements? This is why, it is important that instead of chasing after weight loss supplements, we focus on our overall health.

And to look after your health, it’s important to have health insurance. Because the medical inflation in our country has reached 14%. Look at this article from November 2023, one of the highest medical inflation rates in Asia, is seen in India. According to the 2021 Finance Commission Report, 70% of expenditure on health by Indians is borne out of pocket, because of this, 60 million Indians are pushed towards poverty every year. Shockingly, 73% of Indians do not have health insurance. Health insurances will not protect you against health problems, rather, health insurance would provide financial support.

It gives you peace of mind. In case of any health emergency, you won’t need to face any monetary problems. The sponsor of today’s video will help you with this. Star Health Insurance. Their network includes more than 14,000 hospitals all over India, and they provide support 24*7. They care for you when you need it the most. Star Health is the first standalone insurance company, to have settled more than 10 million claims. This company has been working since 2006 and is highly reputable.

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Now, back to our topic. Some people may compare coffee and weight loss supplements. Even though both contain caffeine, weight loss supplements would have more caffeine. It would be in concentrated form, making the supplements the better option. Taking these supplements may deliver more caffeine to our body, and it’ll be more beneficial. But it is

important to keep in mind that too much caffeine is not a good thing. There’s a high risk of side effects from too much caffeine. We may start experiencing anxiety, nervousness, sleep deprivation, and increased blood pressure. Even the body can become dependent on caffeine. Many people get addicted to coffee. And since these supplements contain caffeine, you can become addicted to them. But you know, these supplements claim to have more than just caffeine. There are other exotic ingredients in these fat burners, such as yohimbine, bitter orange, green tea extract, etc.

But research shows that these ingredients have very little impact on our weight loss. Fat burners are a lot of hype and not much substance. And they are very dangerous. The American FDA declared weight loss products containing ephedra to be banned, the primary ingredient in these products. They were banned because of their severe side effects, which included strokes, and heart attacks.

At the time, there was an uproar by the companies, because they were banned, but they had to replace it with other ingredients like yohimbine, bitter orange, green tea extract, etc. These ingredients are not as dangerous, but they aren’t effective either.

In conclusion, I would like to say that you can lose weight only with patience. No supplement will help you magically. You need to exercise regularly, and consume the right things, and you will get the results. There is no need to take any shortcuts. Our country has one of the worst obesity rates in the world. We need to stay fit and stay healthy. This was all for today. I hope you liked the video. If you did, please share it. Thank you very much!