Alli Commercial Doesn’t Tell The Whole Truth
Alli is an over-the-counter weight loss drug that recently came out. There have been some commercials for it.
Unfortunately, the commercials don’t tell you about the embarrassing side effects. Even if you go to their website, they don’t give you full disclosure of the side effects.
This parody of the commercial is a little more honest, if not vulgar:
This video would have been MUCH more effective if it had only included the REAL side effects instead of adding all those fake ones. There are enough real side effects as it is. Here is the complete list of Alli side effects from Ask Doc Web:
- Abdominal discomfort or pain
- Anxiety
- Arthritis
- Back pain
- Diarrhea, generally mild and goes away
- Dizziness
- Earache
- Fatigue
- Fatty or oily stools – 20% of patients
- Fecal urgency or incontinence – 22.1% of patients
- Flu
- Gas with fecal discharge, generally mild and goes away – 23.9% of patients
- Gum problems
- Headache
- Increased defecation
- Incontinence (fecal) – 7.7% of patients
- leaky stools in some patients temporarily
- Menstrual problems
- Muscle pain
- Nausea
- Rectal discomfort or pain
- Respiratory tract infections
- Skin rash
- Sleep problems
- Stomach cramps
- Tooth problems
- Urgency to have a bowel movement
- Urinary tract infections
- Vaginal inflammation
- Vomiting
- Less common side effects may include dry skin, ear/nose/throat problems and joint disorders.
- Side effects that usually occur after the first year of treatment include depression, leg pain, swollen feet and tendonitis.
With all these risks, I can’t imagine why anyone is even buying Alli. I deal with symptoms very similar to this when I have an outbreak of IBS. I wouldn’t wish them on my worst enemy. Don’t spend your hard earned dollars to make yourself so sick that you will eat healthy.
Previous: Heart Rate & Accelerometer Control Video Game
Next: Question of the Week: What gives me the right to write a health and fitness blog?
January 15th, 2009 at 11:52 am
Does anyone know or have heard of a correlation between taking Alli and muscle strains and tears? I have been on it for over 8 months and about 4 months ago tore a hamstring and strained my rotator cuff. Is this product depleting something in my body that plays a key role in muscle function? Any comments or assistance would be appreciated.
February 3rd, 2009 at 4:00 pm
I was looking on the website for muscle sorness and alli. Everytime I take it I get sore calf or what seems like gout soreness the muscle of my feet.
April 6th, 2009 at 9:22 am
I have been taking Alli and am also experiencing muscle pain, cramps, joint pain very similar to side effects of crestor and tricor statin drugs. I stopped as soon as I realized what this meant!
July 10th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Would like to know if you (Michael Glenner) are from the chicago area. I worked with a personal trainer by this name and wondered where you had moved to.
July 21st, 2009 at 9:24 am
Yes Nick I use to be from the Chicago area. Please write at sbwconsult@aol.com
March 16th, 2010 at 6:56 pm
I too began experiencing severe muscle and joint pain after 9 months of otherwise symptomless use of Alli. My doctor cannot locate the cause and has ruled out arthritis,etc. I contacted the Alli website to know whether they could help. I just recieved an email in which they bluntly refused to answer or post my question in their blog. Do they know something we don’t but should? The statin drugs were on the market for 3 years before Merck finally got around to admitting they caused muscle pain.
April 27th, 2010 at 6:31 pm
I’ve been taking Alli for over a year. For the last 4 months I’ve been having pain and numbness in my feet, extreme fatigue and blurry vision. I read everything I could find, and it all pointed to a vitamin B-12 deficiency, so I started taking some daily. The foot pain and numbness didn’t go away, some days it even felt worse. Then I read some more..could be thyroid or diabetes. UGH! So, gonna weed this out….took Armour Thyroid and the fatigue almost completely went away, feet almost better too, and vision a little clearer. Then did some more reading, and found that Alli shouldn’t be used with Armour Thyroid! WOW! I love Alli, it really helps my weight. Anyway…quit taking the Alli and low and behold…No more foot pain, No blurry vision, No fatigue! I have energy again!!! I feel better than I have in years, and I’m even losing weight. woot woot!!!!!
May 1st, 2010 at 9:00 am
I have been on Alli for 6 months. In the last month, I have had pain in my muscles in my right chest, under my right arm , on my right shoulder and right upper back. I was not taking a multi vitamin. I am now thinking this is coming from vitamin loss from the Alli. I have lost 26 lbs. Alli has helped me have regular BM’s, which I never had before. Only taking it with my dinner meal now. Also, was diagnosed recently as anemic. From Alli? I am now taking an iron pill and multi vitamin daily and will see where this goes.
December 6th, 2010 at 8:49 pm
I took Alli for a month or two. Almost immediately, I experienced some moderate jaw pain. Then I developed a serious pain in my lower right back that flared every time I breathed. And I mean SERIOUS pain– I passed out from it at one point. I have I high tolerance for pain, and this was unbearable. I stopped taking Alli, and both jaw and back pain ended immediately and have not returned.
April 26th, 2011 at 6:35 am
Wow. After 2 months all of a sudden I have leg pain. I’m so sad because it is bothersome enough for me to stop taking it. Sigh….
August 23rd, 2011 at 7:13 am
What about hair loss with Alli. I have back pain, knee and hip pain and my hair has been falling out. Has anyone else taking Alli experienced this?
October 4th, 2012 at 10:09 am
I, too, have had some major joint paint since taking the ‘new’ Alli that was just put back on the market. It feels like arthritis, I will stop taking it today and see if symptoms improve. @Helen G., I have pain in my knees, hips, shoulders, hands, feet… just about every joint and I am considered very healthy. Scary stuff! The FDA should be alerted!!
January 31st, 2013 at 11:10 pm
I have been searching forever for someone else who has bone and muscle pain associated with alli use. I took it a couple years ago and stopped because of the shoulder/clavicle pain I have from it. I decided to give it another go, and today was my first day. By lunch I was sneezing, dizzy and in pain. How can they sell this? How can the FDA approve it?
February 5th, 2013 at 10:05 pm
Yes, since taking xenical in Australia which I bought online and then having bought Alli from Chemistdirect UK the joint pain is definitely quite bad and stops when I stop taking it. Prior to the shortage i didn’t have anything like this but the new Alli and the probably dodgy xenical I took here in Australia is causing very different symptoms and no weight loss. Something is so wrong and no one seems to be doing anything about it.
April 2nd, 2013 at 12:36 pm
I started taking Alli a couple weeks ago. Only took for one week (2 to 3 times a day). I immediately noticed tightening in my abdomen and it made me constipated. When I started to have lower back aches I stopped taking it. It has been a week and I am stilling having lower back pain. Very different than anything else I have had. Not sure if I should be checked out. No other symptoms. I felt like I had the urge to go to the bathroom but it has since gone away. Anyone else experience this?