Alli
The FDA's only over-the-counter diet pill.
BACKGROUND
The anticipation for a new diet pill is over as the FDA recently approved Alli (pronounced Al-eye). It's the weight loss newcomer that is quickly finding its place on drug store shelves. Alli is the first FDA-approved diet pill available without a prescription. Alli is actually a low-dose version of Xenical, a prescription drug that successfully assists obese individuals losing weight. Xenical is taken under a doctor's care while following a low-calorie, low-fat diet. Alli has the same active ingredient (Orlistat), but in a much lower dosage, and is available without the prescription.
Alli can help you lose a few pounds more than just dieting and exercise alone. It works by suppressing the body's ability to absorb fat in the intestines. By reducing fat, you reduce calories. When the body is unable to absorb these fats they become undigested waste.
Alli works best when it is used in conjunction with a low-calorie, low-fat diet and a regular exercise program. But since sticking to a reduced-calorie diet is tough and since certain foods need to be avoided while using the diet pill, Alli has partnered with eDiets, a meal delivery service that delivers Alli-specific meals to your door every week.
While some may view Alli as a controversial solution to weight loss, the manufacturers of this product have gone to great lengths to offer a comprehensive program to its users in order to make weight loss as easy and approachable as possible.
Although studies on the amount of weight loss you can lose with Alli are limited, you can expect to lose three to five pounds more than just relying on diet and exercise alone.
PRO
- May help to jump start a weight loss program
- Comprehensive website that offers support, food journals, calorie counters, meal plans and shopping lists
- Partnership with eDiets makes eating and meal planning simple and convenient
- The only over-the-counter diet pill with FDA approval
- Low-dose version of effective prescription diet pill
CON
- Some think it shouldn’t be sold without a prescription
- Not a long-term solution to weight loss
- Uncomfortable side effects
- Must be very careful to not exceed the maximum fat gram requirement with each meal
- Weight loss affects are modest
- Meal delivery services don't teach you how to consume and prepare your own calorie and portion-controlled meals
INGREDIENTS
Alli contains 60 mg of Orlistat.
ADMINISTRATION
Alli is a 60 mg tablet taken three times a day with meals that should not exceed 15 mg of fat.
DIET and EXERCISE
A low-fat and low-calorie diet must be followed while taking Alli. Since the success of Alli depends so largely on what you eat, how much you eat and when you eat, you have two choices for designing the most effective meal plan for your weight loss needs:
- You could consult with your physician or a registered dietitian to design a well-laid out diet and exercise plan.
- You could sign up for Alli's partner eDiets, a meal delivery service that creates special Alli-approved meals and delivers them to your door each week.
With the eDiets plan, you eat three meals a day plus snack and desserts. Menus can be personalized to reflect your tastes and preferences and you also have access to a registered dietitian, an online community of other Alli dieters and fitness and exercise support.
Since the fat content of each meal must be closely monitored while using Alli (no more than 15 mg each day), eDiets special Alli-approved meals meet these requirements so that your risk of side effects is kept to a minimum.
The eDiets menu includes a wide variety of delicious meals, including:
- Maple Apple Oatmeal
- Denver Style Potato Skillet with Turkey Ham
- Rosemary Pork with Brown Rice
- Oven Roasted Turkey with Savory Sweet Potatoes and Mixed Garden Vegetables
- Blackened Chicken served with Seasoned Spicy Brown Rice
- Peach Cobbler
- Sugar-free Pudding
Irrespective of which meal plan you follow, since Alli inhibits the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, it is important to take a daily supplement that includes Vitamins A, D and E.
In addition, for the best results, a regular exercise program should also be followed that includes 30 minutes of exercise on most days of the week. If you decide to sign-up with eDiets meal delivery service, you have access to a live fitness trainer to help you customize an exercise plan to compliment your weight loss needs.
CONCLUSION
Many people have seen positive results with Alli. However, those considering taking Alli should note that side effects can include gas, and uncontrolled urination and bowel movements, especially when not following the guidelines prescribed by Alli.
Alli is not a magic pill to lose weight, but its special partnership with eDiets, a meal delivery service, makes eating and meal planning simple and convenient.
Do keep in mind that the effects of taking Alli in comparison to just dieting and exercising alone are just the difference of a few pounds. It is necessary that you consult with your medical practitioner before taking Alli.
Common Misspellings
Alle, Ally, Alli Diet, Alli Pill, Alli Diet Pill, Allu, alli.com
Related Diets: eDiets, Advantra-Z, Contrave, Hydroxycut, Orlistat, Xenical
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Had to go to the ER. My pulse and blood pressure went through the roof after I was on Alli for about 2 weeks. My heart felt like it was going to explode!
I am 140 and wanted to drop 10 pounds. I lost 5 in 7 days but I started to have upper stomach pain. Never had the oil/orange discharge because I ate lo fat/lo calorie.
Read other blogs about this product before you put it in your body. And do your research.
My pulse still accelerates intermittently out of the blue and I am in good health (or at least I was prior to this).
I bought this at costco and thankfully got a full refund.
Proceed with caution people.
now its been almost 2 weeks that I have been on alli still no results .Can anyone tell what to eat? I am a pure vegetarian.
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Ok. I have been taking it and have the orange greasy stool but I admit, I eat more than 15 grams of fat per meal, but mainly just at lunch. Will you lose more weight if u eat less fat I mean it seems to me that most of the fat is coming out anyways right. That is what the orange crap is, isn't it? Someone help me out here.
I am starting Alli today, I am 22 and want to lose around 20 pounds for my wedding in July. I really hope this works, I am going to try and stick to the low calorie better healthy foods as I know its important. I will comment in a few days.
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I have been taking Alli for 4 days now ...have been on perfect diet and excercising almost every day.I still did 'nt see any results yet...BTW I am 28 years old...
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I LOVE alli, it is exactly what I was needing because living a low fat way of life is good, but the loss was very slow and it's easy to lose interest. alli has changed my life and it has allowed me to really get the scale moving as long as I do my part. You DO NOT take this and then eat whatever you want, for those of you who still aren't getting really honest with yourself and "think" you can just take alli and not totally change how you view food, cook food, buy food and most importantly eat food then it isn't for you and nothing is until you really commit to changing EVERYTHING. It all starts in the brain and if your mind isn't ready to change then there is little hope no matter what you try. I am in my 3rd week of alli and it's amazing how good this little blue pill works for me, I am seeing the weight come off daily, yes daily. The good news is, I still eat the foods I love, I just have learned how to make them healthier for
me. Here is an example, could I really live without ever eating a brownie again as long as I live? yeah right!! now I can because I make them low fat and still lose weight. It's not about what you can't have, but more of taking the foods I love and making them better for me. This journey i am on is NOT a diet, but a total lifestyle change, in other words, I refuse to go back to how I used to view food and buy food and cook food. alli has been key to me "getting real" and staying on track. I didn't gain this weight over night so I will not lose it over night, it's a process and during this process, I must learn more about the "why's" so I won't repeat old patterns, if I do learn and really get honest with me, then I can be free from a life of complete misery due to being over weight, no body did "this" to me, I did it to myself. My advice to anyone wanting to try alli, is do not take it if you are like countless others who are wanting a quick fix. Rather do this with a commitment to change everything about you that has gotten where you are today.
This is a Journey to a better LIFE and when you really understand you are worth it and CAN do it, then your life will start to change. One more little piece of info is YOU DO NOT HAVE TO STARVE TO LOSE WEIGHT. It's all about eating and eating the right way. Good luck to everyone who is on this amazing journey of health and life. WE CAN DO IT AND WE WILL. GOD IS GOOD ALL OF THE TIME ;)
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I've been on Alli for 5 days now and have noticed that my pooch is going down! I haven't weighed myself but I can already tell my clothes is fitting better. At first I didn't read any of the pamphlets about bowel movement warnings. Sure enough one morning after a night of brewing gas all night I'm at my parents having coffee. Sitting on the couch I 'discretely' try to sneak out a silent one. OMG, so much oil comes out I make a 6 inch stain on the couch! How do I get up & go to the bathroom with my dad sitting there?!?! Luckily my mom notices the face of panic I have & saves me from the embarrassment. Just like several of the other people have left comments always go to the bathroom if you're going to pass gass. TRUST ME! After that experience everything is going smooth now. No pun intended!
You only get the treatment affects if you eat like crap. So if you get very severe effects it's your own fault. You will get slight side effects even if you dont eat like crap, but that's the pill working and it won't be that uncomfortable.
I personally hardely ever get severe side effects. I've never crapped my pants or had to rush to the bathroom. I have gone to the bathroom more and had to wash my underwear with a little extra detergent but that's it. Within the first week people noticed a difference in my weight and I'm not even that much overweight.
Ultimately this is a deterent pill. If you eat poorly it will punish you with side effects. If you eat well, it will reward you with extra weight loss. This is good for when you have to come off the pill in 6 months; that is, you will know how to eat healthy and it will be more of a habit for you. Just give it a serious try.
honey3030
I purchased Alli two weeks ago. The first week I did not take it seriously. I ate pizza & basically everything I was eating before but just less of it. I did have some oily stools but nothing to extreme. Then I started feeling like what is the point of taking these pills? I mean it only blocks %25 of the fat that we eat but we can only eat 15 grams of fat per meal! I thought how is this going to do anything for me? So as the second week unfolds I started really adhearing to the 15 gms. I lost two lbs so far without excercise. What Alli has taught in this short period of time is that certain foods you may think are healthy aren't. For the first 4 days of my second week I ate a salad for lunch, oatmeal for breakfast and a lean cusine for dinner. I purchased the salad at Target. The most delicious salad for only $4. It had no nutional information just the ingredients. But I figured what the hay it's a salad! I ate this for four days until on the last day I looked on-line to see what I was eating. This salad had 30g of fat! Can you believe that? Now when I purchase foods I am first looking at the labels to find out what is in there. Also buying low fat or no fat foods really don't taste like I thought they would. I purchased some non-fat yougart that tasted just like the regular one, but minus an addtional 70 calories. I love P&J sandwitches, but discovered that 2tbs of P is 15 grams of fat WHOA! Never knew why I was gaining weight now I know. Alli has taught to be conscience of labels. What I can & should be eating. It has taught me to care. I recommend this to anyone who is not only trying to lose weight, but also change their lifestlye.
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I've been on Alli for a week now...lost 3 lbs but I've gained 2 back in the last couple of days...I'm thinking it is because I haven't been drinking my water like I'm suppose to. No bad side-effects yet...
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I staeted Alli on Sunday and haven't had any nasty side effects....am I doing anything wrong? I am staying in my fat grams and all. But saometimes I think that when I may have gone over ..it's on, but nothing happens.
j2010
Started Alli one week ago and have lost 5 pounds so far, hoping it keeps coming off quickly
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I am starting Alli tomorrow.... will keep you posted.
what about glass or two of wine with dinner(when you are taking the pill)? will that gona do any harm....?
I just bought the 30 day starter pack and am excited about seeing how it works.
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i just started using alli for abt a week and im sticking to the calorie count.to ma surprise,ive gained about for lbs.A lil confused because im thinking the weight gain is due to me being on ma period.im kinda scared cus i dont wanna gain weight being on diet pill.on the other hand,i wanna complete d botlle and see how it works for me.im in great neeed of advice here
GI upset almost continous whether I eat or not. Gas !
It does not matter how much weight i loose on this if i crap myself! What man will want a woman who looks great but......craps herself? Does that really happen?
I want to try this but it does not matter how much weight i loose if i crap my pants what good is it? What man wants a woman who looks good but craps herself? Is this really a common thing?
3 wks of Alli, 4lbs of weight loss.
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