Laxatives for weight loss – Alarming Trend

Laxatives for weight loss – Alarming Trend
In a world obsessed with looks and vanity, here's another disturbing piece of evidence to show the lengths one would go to lose weigh and 'confirm' to celebrity standards. Laxatives are now being increasingly used as the new weight loss pill, with many women popping these in a desperate attempt to get that 'perfect' figure.

Consumer goods analyst Mintel has revealed that UK laxative market has grown by 33% since 2001 and is now worth £52m. The company attributes a portion of this escalating growth to its increasing use by slimmers. More, analysts have also warned that the trend gaining in popularity and the laxative market was expected to further grow by 50% over the next five years.

Mintel claimed typical laxative abuse occurred following a spout of overeating of high energy or sugar-laden foods. These women mistakenly believe that the laxative could help them throw-up, thus negating the calories consumed. Laxatives are also a rage among some Bulimic patients who use it to 'purge' their bodies of the food they have eaten.

These women however lose more that just their weight. Laxatives can lead to several health risks and can even be fatal. Heart failure, renal failure and bowel problems are only few of the problems associated with this 'lifestyle laxative' intake. The study which was conducted by the Eating Disorders Association found that weight-loss induced laxatives were being consumed by an astounding one in five women. The figures for male consumers were much less.

More appalling is the fact that most laxative users, particularly young women remain unaware of its massive health risks especially since laxatives are cheap, widely available in almost all drug stores and can be easily purchased over-the-counter or even on the Internet.

While women initially started out by consuming just a few pills a day, invariably they took to popping the pills by the dozen. Ironically these women do not even eventually lose weight as the body absorbs the sugar-high foods almost immediately and so the laxatives are useless for weight loss. Also as association spokesman Mr. Steve Bloomfield pointed out, laxatives “ just rob the body of vital vitamins and minerals, most significantly potassium, which can result in heart failure”. Honestly, do we need to get thin at the cost of our lives?