Physical Effects
According to Dr. J. Douglas Bremner in “Before You Take That Pill: Why the Drug Industry May Be Bad for Your Health,” long-term use of diet pills can have serious consequences. Bremner cites a Mayo Clinic doctor, Heidi Connolly, who studied diet pills and their adverse effects. Connolly noted that taking diet pills makes you six times more likely to get primary pulmonary hypertension, a disease that increases pressure on the arteries in your lungs. It results in breathing problems, often followed by the need for a lung transplant. Specifically, Bremner notes that sibutramine, also called Meridia, causes palpitations, stroke and increased blood pressure. Amphetamine-like drugs such as diethylpropion and benzphetamine have similar effects.