Wednesday 27 April 2011

Health Plus Weight Control Supplements review


Along with the Children's Vitamins and Minerals (that I've just reviewed here), I said that I'd also be willing to try out Health Plus's weight control supplements. I have to admit to being a bit sceptical of how successful these kinds of supplements can be, as well as wary of some of the highly unpleasant side effects certain brands have. (If it tells me anywhere on the label that I should wear dark coloured trousers while using the product, it's going straight in the bin, I can tell you now !)

Health Plus sent me though a tub of Konjac Fibre 500mg Weight Control Supplement tablets and a Metabolic Pack - dubbed The Vitamin and Mineral Programme for Active People and Slimmers.

Having never heard of Konjac Fibre, I was reassured to see on the website that it's labelled as "recommended by The Mail on Sunday". I'd have liked a link to click through to to see for myself but I'll take their word for it ! Health Plus describe it as "Konjac Fibre, naturally containing Glucomannan, to help promote regularity and a feeling of fullness, as well as balancing blood sugar levels, leading to less cravings and so sustainable weight loss". If you click through for more information, you learn a little more. "Exclusive to Health Plus ! This amazing product, as recommended by Patrick Holford, has a devout worldwide following for weight management. The Konjac plant naturally contains Glucomannan which has been shown to promote regularity and provide a feeling of fullness. A valuable product in terms of digestive health which may also help maintain proper blood-sugar levels."

The tablets are vegan-friendly and are free from sugar, gluten, yeast, lactose, wheat and colourings. A large tub contains 210 capsules which is just as well because you do need to take quite a lot - 2 capsules before breakfast, 3 before lunch and 5 before dinner. That's ten a day so a 210 capsule pot will last you three weeks.

The label says that you should always take the capsules with plenty of water so I tried them with a big glass of water before meals. Drinking a glass of water before you sit down to eat is a tip you often see in diet books and magazines to help you eat less, so it's hard to know if it's the water or the Konjac giving you a feeling of fullness and reducing your appetite. Either way, it does seem to work though and I had no unleasant side effects.

Moving on to the Metabolic Pack, I was slightly shocked at the number of tablets in each individually-wrapped daily sachet. As you can see from this photo, you'll be counting tablets as much as calories !


Now, a question that I've often pondered is, can you actually have too much of a good thing ? What actually happens if you exceed your recommended daily intake of vitamins ? Does it do you any harm ? Well, presumably not because this supplement has some mind-boggling numbers on it ! Each sachet contains, amongst other things, 2083% of your vitamin C, 7850% of your vitamin B6, 5357% of your vitamin B1, 4688% of your vitamin B2 and 1000% of your vitamin B12. That all sounds vaguely worrying to me, especially as this is on top of the vitamins and minerals you'll already get from your food !

The small print says : "This amount of vitamin C may cause mild stomach upset in sensitive individuals. Long term intakes of this amount of vitamin B6 may lead to mild tingling and numbness. This product contains vitamin A. Do not take if pregnant or likely to become so, except on the advice of a doctor or ante-natal clinic. This amount of nicotinic acid may cause skin flushes in sensitive individuals."

According to the box, you can take this supplement alongside the Konjac Fibre - I'll be rattling if I jump, at this rate ! But in for a penny, in for a pound, I decided to take a leap of faith and give it a go. The tablets don't taste particularly pleasant but if you swallow them with a drink, you don't taste them that much, especially as you'll be eating afterwards.

I have to say, I am slowly losing weight - nothing dramatic, just 1-2 lbs a week, but that's the healthy rate that you're supposed to aim for. However, I have no idea if this is down to the supplements or because I'm also cutting down on chocolate and biscuits and going for long walks with the kids. I can say that I've had no worrying side effects (although I have no idea if I'm a "sensitive individual" or not !).

I'll use them until the end of the box (28 days for the Metabolic Pack) but I have to admit that I'd be a bit worried about exceeding the RDA of so many vitamins and minerals by so much for any longer.

star rating : 4/5

RRP : Metabolic Pack £15.95, Konjac Fibre 500mg (210 capsules) £19.95


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1 comment:

  1. i also use this supplements. this supplements are really help for me to control my weight. these are no side effects.

    ReplyDelete

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