On the current market, there are tons of weight-loss pills available, and some of them are designed to curb the appetite. There are newcomers in the war against obesity which is already approved in Europe but is yet to get FDA approval in the US, and they are designed to help you eat less food. Doesn’t sound new to you? Wait until you hear how they work: they expand in the stomach, thus leaving less available space for food.
They are known as balloon weight-loss pills. Inside each capsule is a deflated balloon with a catheter attached to it. When swallowed, the balloon is filled with gas which amounts to about a cup. Up to 3 balloon weight-loss pills may be swallowed per treatment. By the way, a treatment lasts for 6 months — at the end of the treatment, the balloons are deflated and removed with the help of an endoscope.
Similar to Bariatric Surgery, But Less Complicated
When the balloon weight-loss pills are inflated, they take up a lot of space in the stomach. This makes you feel full very quickly during a meal, saving you from eating more food than necessary. With your intake of food limited, the amount of calories you consume is greatly diminished, and this is what causes you to lose weight.
Basically, balloon weight-loss pills give the same effect as bariatric surgery — a procedure that involves wrapping the stomach with an adjustable band, resulting in the reduced capacity of the stomach. There are other types of bariatric surgery, and all of them are invasive and come with certain risk factors. Also, bariatric surgery is a weight loss option only for people who are suffering from severe obesity.
Clearly, the use of balloon weight-loss pills in battling the bulge is a less complicated solution that bariatric surgery. You swallow a pill, a doctor fills the deflated balloon in it with gas, and then removes it after 6 months — there is no need for you to undergo the knife.
It Does Not Come Completely Without Side Effects
Balloon weight-loss pills work by reducing the amount of food that your stomach can hold per meal. So in effect, it helps you reduce your appetite. As mentioned earlier, up to 3 balloon weight-loss pills may be swallowed, but they are not given all at the same time. For instance, in a study conducted on balloon weight-loss pills, the participants were given a single pill per week only, until such time that they have a total of 3 inflated balloons in their stomachs.
While there are weight-loss pills that also reduce the appetite, they work in an entirely different way — they release chemicals that make you feel satiated. Needless to say, these pills that curb the appetite come with various side effects, including nausea, mouth dryness, blurring of vision, stomach upset and constipation.
Since balloon weight-loss pills do not contain any chemical, you don’t have to worry about putting up with all sorts of side effects associated with the intake of other appetite-suppressing pills. However, balloon weight-loss pills do not come without side effects, but they are very mild. According to 90 percent of people who participated in a study, balloon weight-loss pills caused nausea and stomach cramps, but they reported them to be mild to moderate only.
Other Obesity Contributors Not Addressed Properly
Compared to bariatric surgery, balloon weight-loss pills are less risky. Considering how they work, they can prove to be very beneficial for overweight or obese individuals who are having a hard time shedding off unwanted pounds through more traditional weight-loss approaches.
However, balloon weight-loss pills clearly do not deal with other contributing factors to obesity, such as unhealthy food choices and leading a sedentary lifestyle. While the preliminary study conducted on them showed that balloon weight-loss pills actually helped many participants lose weight, as of now no one can really tell for how long the participants can keep at bay the amount of weight lost after the removal of the balloons in their stomachs.
