Alli is a recently popular over the counter weight loss drug. It is what is known as a lipase inhibitor. Thus, it blocks the absorption of a significant amount of dietary fat. If you’re planning to lose weight with Medifast, you might be wondering if adding Alli to your weight loss plan would make it even more effective. I have to say the answer to that is no. Let’s see why.
First off, Medifast is a low-fat, low-carbohydrate, and low-calorie diet. Since it’s already quite low in fat, Medifast itself doesn’t recommend that you use Alli at the same time as Medifast for weight loss. While Alli does exactly what it’s advertised to do, blocking the absorption of fats, it really isn’t going to be all that useful on an already low-fat diet.
Alli is an over-the-counter version of the drug called Orlistat or Xenical. The FDA has approved it for use in weight management, but that basically requires you to eat a regular diet, not as low-fat as Medifast. If you were using Alli at the same time, you would be blocking up to 30% of your dietary fat intake. The thing is, you actually need some fat in your diet. It is important for the absorption of certain vitamins and minerals. So you don’t want to go too deep.
However, I think there are other good reasons not to use Alli, and they all have to do with your gastrointestinal tract. Side effects are quite common with both orlistat and alli. Diarrhea isn’t even the worst part. How about some wet farts? Yes, not too pretty. Most of Alli’s side effects are related to the gastrointestinal tract and the fact that when your body can’t absorb the fat you eat, there is only one place it can go and that is your bowel movements.
Alli can also prevent the proper absorption of certain fat-soluble vitamins. Remember when I said you need some fat in your diet? Well, you definitely need it to properly absorb vitamin D, and many people are vitamin D deficient (especially in the winter), so that’s not a good thing either. The other important fat-soluble vitamins are A, E, and K.
If you decide to give the Medifast program a try, you’ll find that you don’t really need the extra stuff that Alli does. Medifast can work fairly quickly if you follow the program alone. So there really is no need to supplement with fat suppressants or appetite suppressants.
Thanks to Jenni Kerala
