Is Taking Clenbuterol For Weight Loss Safe?

Clenbuterol came to the attention of dieters as a result of rumors that many celebrities were taking it to lose weight. However, there are several reasons why you should think twice before you take clenbuterol for weight loss.

What Is Clenbuterol?

Clenbuterol is predominantly used as a veterinary drug for horses and other livestock. Prior to the nineties, some horse owners were using a liquid form of the drug to build muscle in show animals. However, the drug was temporarily banned by the FDA in 1991 after horse meat tainted with clenbuterol was found to cause serious health problems in humans who had consumed it. This included significant and irreversible damage to the heart and lungs.

The ban was reversed seven years later, when the FDA approved clenbuterol for the treatment of lung obstruction in horses. However, the stipulation was made that any horses who were administered the drug could not later be slaughtered for human consumption. The Department of Agriculture monitors this very closely, due to the great concern about the impact it could have on the food chain.

The Use Of Clenbuterol For Weight Loss

Despite irrefutable evidence that clenbuterol can have very serious side effects in humans, some people continue to obtain it illegally. It is particularly popular as an illicit drug among athletes and body builders because it builds muscle. This also makes it appealing to dieters, because muscle mass correlates with the effectiveness of the metabolism. In short, if you build more muscle then your metabolism will burn calories more quickly.

Some websites promoting the use of clenbuterol cite the fact that it is used as an asthma medication, and therefore must be safe. However, this is only the case outside the United States and the form of clenbuterol used in inhalers is very different to the equestrienne drug which comes in liquid form. In the USA, the drug is very much illegal for off-label use, and the International Olympic Committee has also banned it for use by athletes.

The Side Effects of Clenbuterol

As already mentioned, merely eating food tainted with the drug can cause serious impairment to the function of the heart and lungs. There are also many cases of people who have taken clenbuterol illegally being hospitalized with life threatening side effects, such as tachycardia (a racing heartbeat) and heart arrhythmia. The substance is considered by the FDA to be a poison.

Are There Any Safe Drugs For Weight Loss?

We have established that clenbuterol for weight loss is inadvisable and potentially lethal, but are there any drugs which are considered safe? Currently, the FDA supports the use of sibutramine and orlistat but these are not without risks and unpleasant side effects. Therefore, these can only be taken under the strict supervision of a doctor and are only prescribed to clinically obese patients. That is those with a BMI in excess of 30.

For more information about losing weight safely, you should speak to your family doctor.