OBJECTIVES To review pharmaceutical analogue adulteration of non-prescription slimming products. DESIGN Retrospective study. SETTING Tertiary referral centre for toxicology analysis, Hong Kong. PATIENTS All patients known to have been hospitalised after taking slimming products adulterated with pharmaceutical analogues from September 2004 to December 2006. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Age, rea...

BACKGROUND Despite rising levels of obesity in England, little is known about slimming club and weight loss drug (medication) use or users. In order to inform future commissioning, we report the prevalence of various weight management strategies and examine the associations between slimming club and medication use and age, gender, deprivation and body mass index. METHODS A population based cr...

Introduction Diets and exercise should be the mainstay of management of obesity. Nonetheless, many people put their faith in slimming agents as a quick fix for weight reduction. Their effectiveness appears to be limited as the amount of weight loss is small. The lack of long-term safety data and the occurrence of adverse effects are important consideration. Proprietary slimming products are het...

BACKGROUND Cellulite is a 'cottage cheese-like' cutaneous change caused by subcutaneous fat bulging into the dermis that usually leads to cosmetic problems. Slimming cream containing 3.5% water-soluble caffeine and xanthenes exhibits a lipolytic effect with penetration into the dermis. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy and safety of slimming cream for the treatment of cellulite. METHODS Fi...

Anorexia nervosa, a rare illness which occurs predominantly among adolescent girls, usually begins with dieting which gradually gets out of hand.

The pejorative aphorism Obesity is the result of greed and sloth has come to be applied to the fat individual. The inferences implied are widely accepted not only by the public and journalists but by the health-care professional and the nutritional scientist too. Is this justified particularly with respect to sloth? Of course, fat deposition must be the result of excess intake of energy in rela...

The presence of gall stones diagnosed by ultrasonography in a cross sectional study was analysed in relation to relative weight, weight change since age 25, slimming treatment, physical activity, smoking, consumption of coffee, and diabetes mellitus. The random sample comprised 4581 men and women of Danish origin, aged 30, 40, 50, and 60 years, of whom 3608 (79%) attended the investigation. In ...

AIMS To provide an overview of illicit weight-reducing agents found in over-the-counter slimming products ingested by poisoned patients. METHODS The clinical details and analytical findings of slimming products involved in poisoning cases between 2004 and 2009 were reviewed. RESULTS Sixty-six (including one fatal) poisoning cases were encountered. Eighty-one products were analysed and found...