Adolescents are using weight loss products in high numbers, new study shows. Here's what parents need to know.
Despite movements toward body neutrality and body positivity, weight remains a common fixation in the U.S. and around the world. Now, new research finds that a significant number of adolescents are resorting to using over-the-counter products and supplements in an attempt to lose weight.
The study, which is published in JAMA Network Open, analyzed data from 90 scientific articles, including 50 from North America. Overall, the researchers found that 5.5% of adolescents around the world use non-prescription weight loss products, and that girls were more likely to use these products than boys.
"Use of weight loss products occurs at high levels in adolescents, especially girls," the researchers concluded. "These findings suggest that, given the ineffectiveness of these products for weight loss coupled with their harmful long-term health consequences, interventions are required to reduce use of weight loss products in this group."
But what products are adolescents (who fall, broadly, between the ages of 10 and 19, though this study only included individuals aged 18 or younger) using and what is the danger in this? Doctors break it down.
What are tweens and teens using to lose weight?
Adolescents are using several products to try to lose weight. "Our study found that lifetime prevalence for use of diet pills was the highest at 6%," lead study author Natasha Hall, a research fellow at Monash University, tells Yahoo Life. "This was followed by laxatives at 4% and finally diuretics, which had a 2% prevalence."
This "mirrors what we see in adults," Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, an obesity medicine physician scientist and associate professor of medicine and pediatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, tells Yahoo Life. "People are quick to try fads with no supportive data in their quest to lose weight," she adds.
What's the risk?
Experts say there are a few potential risks to young people trying to lose weight this way. "Taking medications without oversight of a medical professional is concerning," Melissa Santos, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and division chief of pediatric psychology at Connecticut Children’s, tells Yahoo Life. "In addition, the effects of these medications are not known fully in adolescents."
Diet pills are typically supplements, which are in a largely unregulated industry, making it difficult to know for sure what's in them, Dr. Mir Ali, bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, Calif., tells Yahoo Life. Hall agrees. "These products have also been found to be illegally laced with banned pharmaceuticals and other toxic ingredients, which can cause harms to the body in many ways," she says.
Over-the-counter medications like laxatives and diuretics can have side effects too, Ali says."Laxatives can be habit-forming," he says. "Sometimes a person's colon adapts to them and they have difficulty having normal bowel movements without laxatives."
Diuretics can also cause dehydration and kidney issues, Ali says. Both medications can lead to electrolyte imbalances too, Jamie Alan, an associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University, tells Yahoo Life. "This is a stark reminder of the toxic effects of 'diet culture' and society pushing people to inhabit a certain body type," she says. "Using some of these types of products can have significant effects."
There's also the emotional toll of using medications like this for weight loss, Allison Chase, senior clinical adviser at Eating Recovery Center, tells Yahoo Life. "It is continuing to perpetuate the preoccupation on body image and unhealthful eating behaviors, typically linked to increases in anxiety and depression," she says. Kids who use weight loss products also have a greater risk of developing an eating disorder, Hall says.
What can parents do?
It's important for parents to keep an eye out for certain signs that their child may be using over-the-counter medications to try to lose weight, Rebecca Eyre, senior adviser at Project HEAL, tells Yahoo Life. She recommends looking for these signs:
Skips meals regularly
Refuses to eat with family or friends
Withdraws from friends or social life
Expresses disinterest in hobbies or things they once enjoyed
Spends a lot of time in the bathroom
Drinks unusual amounts of water
Keeps a stash of “fun foods” in their room
Weighs themselves more than rarely
Spends a lot of time evaluating their body in the mirror
Has outsized emotional reactions to getting dressed or shopping for clothes
Gets agitated when not allowed to exercise
Follows social media accounts focused on “healthy eating,” weight loss or particularly lean/muscular bodies
"Parents can also pay close attention to the language their children use about themselves, their bodies and other people’s appearance," Eyre says. "Some phrases to avoid are, 'I feel fat,' 'This food is bad for me' or language of comparison in general."
It's also crucial for parents to model positive behaviors around weight, Stanford says. "Often, adolescents learn from those who are around them," she says. Santos agrees. "They watch and will mimic what we tend to do," she says. "As adults, we want to make sure we watch what we say and demonstrate healthy behaviors."
If your child has weight concerns, Chase recommends hearing them out. "I always recommend parents approaching their adolescent children with empathy and understanding that much of what they see in the media and via marketing techniques is appealing, especially at a time when the focus is on having 'the perfect body' and acknowledging the constant comparison that exists," she says. "This will help to engage their children to have a more open and productive conversation about the negative effects, as well as formulating suggestions and ideas about the ways that parents can help support not engaging in these unhealthy behaviors."
But Stanford says it's also important to bring a medical professional into the conversation. "If a child is concerned about their weight, it is best to address this with their pediatrician," she says.
