With all the advancements that have been made in the modern world, bio-medical research has managed to assist in the quest for weight loss with many drugs that assist is many ways. Many of these drugs and medicines are packaged as supplements and without exception they all claim to offer to assist to lose weight fast and safe and without too much trouble along the way. The most obvious question we must ask ourselves, though, is are they effective?

I'm sure that we have all heard the negative results that some of the users of some of these supplements have had in the past as the press never fail to grab hold of tales of doom and gloom. Consequently, such supplements are often universally viewed as being merely scams with a huge amount of cynicism. However, never lose hope, as for every tale of woe and despair there are an equal if not greater number of fabulous good news stories. Most individuals who try such supplements report profound weight loss and manage to lose weight fast and safe. Therefore we should conclude that there is more evidence to support the use of such supplements than the nay-sayers would have us believe.

To best appreciate what they do, we should endeavour to understand how and why most supplements work. Generally, the majority of diet supplements carry out one or more of the following functions:

• Assist in controlling the appetite.
• Boost the catabolic side of the metabolic process
• Help the processes of the body's digestive system

Hopefully, you will agree that assisting any one or all of these processes would naturally help any individual to lose weight fast and safe. Firstly, controlling the appetite of an individual is paramount to avoid eating more than is necessary, otherwise known as binge eating. The majority of individuals that are obese or overweight have trouble just saying no to the amount of food that they eat, so controlling the appetite for these people would be of primary importance.

Likewise, those that have or are perceived to have a slow metabolic rate are again at risk of gaining weight or being unable to lose weight fast and safe, so something that could increase the catabolic side of their metabolism would help them in their goal. This means that they will be able to utilise any excess energy derived from food and therefore not add to their body fat stores. Finally, helping the processes of the digestive system by easing the passage of food will in addition aid metabolism. Consequently, you will not be sleeping while your body retains undigested food, and risking storing it as body fat.

In summary, any supplements that do any or all three of these functions cannot fail to have the potential to assist anyone to lose weight fast and safe, but do they work as advertised? One cannot wholly substantiate the advertisers' claims, but what we do know is that most supplements do work if you are realistic in your expectations. The bottom line is that supplements can help as part of a diet regime, but they cannot be used solely in isolation. There is, after all no such thing as a miracle cure.

Martin Deakin is an avid supporter of healthy weight loss. He is passionate about the ill effects of being overweight and how to help others to lose weight fast and safe. You could say that he is almost fanatical. He has a blog which includes articles, research and resources on how to lose weight fast and safe at http://www.loseweight-fastandsafe.com.

By Martin Deakin