Taking a pill to fix a problem goes back centuries. Going back to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, people have been trying to take a tincture, swallow a pill, or drink a potion to make all their problems go away.

Weight loss is no different, with the possible exception that being thin wasn’t always desirable. In fact, it wasn’t until the late 1800s that women wanted to be thin, or that men wanted them to be thin.

As a result of the trend toward being more trim, companies came along to help. Of course, some of these companies were more concerned with profits than results. After all, in the 1890s you couldn’t really do the research on companies that we can do now.

We’ll take a look at how weight loss products have changed over the years. Eventually, we’ll get to the modern age, where we have some much more safe products, like PhenQ.

Before Actual Chemistry

These days, we’re lucky to have products like PhenQ or Leanbean. Proven, safe, and effective, these are researched and refined products backed by science. Unfortunately for those who came before us, this wasn’t always the case.

Before the diet pill fads of the 1960s and 1970s, going way back to the 1900s, there was a real market for taking tapeworms. You read that correctly. Tapeworms, intentionally ingested, for weight loss. Tapeworms will affect how much food you absorb, and therefore how many calories you store, but we shouldn’t need to explain too much further that they are very unhealthy. They are a parasite, after all.

Of course, other diet trends including chewing differently, and cutting out red meats were popular. Some of these fads still pop up from time to time. But nothing beats real science, and some of that started in the next chapter of diet pills.

Early Diet Pills

The first early diet pills were derivatives of Thyroid extract. These pills worked for temporary weight loss, but they also caused hyperthyroidism. While this has short-term metabolism benefits, it also causes heart damage and even death.

The next iteration of early diet pills was an unregulated drug called Dinitrophenol. This was also effective but to the detriment of the people who took it. Dinitrophenol did indeed increase people’s metabolism, but it sped it up too much and caused nerve damage. One can think of the molecules of the body are sped up to the point that they cause actual thermogenic malfunctions. People’s nervous systems were almost cooking from the inside out.

It should be noted that with the rise of the FDA, both of these options were regulated and made illegal. Modern alternatives like PhenQ, Leanbean or PhenGold are much safer and completely legal.

Top Alternatives Today

Post World War II

Coming out of the Second World War was a powerful stimulant called amphetamine. Used in candies and given to GIs, it was also called ‘pilot’s chocolate’ for its ability to keep bomber pilots awake and alert during long raids and flights.

Amphetamines also had noted appetite suppressant effects. This made it a popular option for people after the war who wanted to maintain a slim figure. But like many ‘wonder drugs’ of the post-war era, there wasn’t enough research done ahead of time to prevent addiction or other side effects.

Through the 1960s, clinics and other resources were used by people looking to lose weight. These clinics would hand out pill regimens that came to be called “rainbow pills.” They called them this because there would be several pills (including diuretics, heart medications, amphetamines, and others), all of the different colors. People would take these pills in different sequences to lose weight.

While all of these regimens did have some effect, they also had extremely dangerous and sometimes fatal consequences.

Luckily for us, we have the option of taking safe, legal, and effective products like LeanBean, which we’ll discuss later, that have only natural ingredients, and don’t require odd regimens or clinics.

The “Fen-Phen” Craze

In the 1980s a popular cocktail of drugs became available that did indeed help with weight loss. Unfortunately, this cocktail also came with significant risks of heart valve failure, liver damage, and death.

The term fen-phen comes from the first syllable of the two drugs, fenfluramine, and phentermine. The former drug, fenfluramine, is now completely illegal in the United States, while the latter, phentermine, is only available with a prescription and only for short-term use.

We should note, here, that latter product like PhenGold and PhenQ does not contain any actual phentermine. They are safe, legal, and effective.

Several more products have been available by prescription only or over the counter, like Acomplia, Meridia, and Hydroxycut. All of them have eventually had to be pulled from the shelves because of safety issues. Either death or serious illness has followed all of these products.

Thankfully, we have found three new, modern products that do not have these safety or legal issues. And all three of them work. Below, we’ll talk about PhenGold, LeanBean, and PhenQ.

Modern Alternatives

While conducting our research for the history of diet pills, we came across three unique blends that are available to the modern consumer. We didn’t think a proper history of the product would be complete without mentioning just how far we really have come with weight loss and diet pills.

Each of the products is different, and that’s why we included all three. If you’re looking for something specific, one or another might be the better option for you. So read each description to see which might be best for your needs or goals.

PhenQ

Users of PhenQ have been shown to lower their total body weight, lower their body fat percentage, and increase their lean muscle mass. That’s a trifecta anyone should be able to get behind.

What makes PhenQ’s product so great is that they’ve taken their diet pill beyond the α-Lacys Reset. They also use CapsiMax, a proprietary blend of natural ingredients that not only increase your metabolism but help you absorb other nutrients more readily.

Outside of being safe, legal, and effective, one of the best parts about PhenQ is their 60-Day Money Back Guarantee. That means if you purchased three bottles and tried the product for a full sixty days, and weren’t satisfied, you could return the third unused bottle for a full refund.

As a modern alternative to the unsafe, and largely illegal, diet pills of the past, we recommend PhenQ. You can get a two-month supply, plus a free third month, for $139.90 on their website.

Leanbean

Leanbean’s key ingredient is a fibrous plant extract called Glucomannan, front he Konjac plant. This fiber is highly effective in two main ways. First, it swells in our systems when it absorbs water, helping us to feel fuller for longer. Our bodies weren’t designed to get so many calories for so little food mass. Highly processed modern foods have extracted the sugar, protein, and fat out of the natural foods with very little physical matter left over.

By adding the fiber back into our body, Leanbean helps us to feel more full when we’ve eaten the right amount of food. That means less snacking and less idle eating between meals. 

The second benefit of glucomannan is that it binds to fat cells in our digestive tract to prevent us from absorbing them as quickly or easily. That means putting on less of the calories we do take in.

The formula doesn’t rely on fiber, alone, though. It also has Choline, a compound vital to proper cell function, and nine other key ingredients, all of nature, that all do work. From the piperine that helps you absorb nutrients better to the Green Coffee for energy, every part of Leanbean is designed for safe, effective, legal weight loss.

For a modern diet pill just for women, we don’t know if you can do better than LeanBean. A three-month supply, which comes with a free fourth month and a free gift, is on sale for $189.97.

PhenGold

The ingredients that stuck out to us in PhenGold are amino acids, called L-Theanine and L-Tyrosine. Both of these acids are helpful in improving metabolic function. They’ve been researched to help the body not only have a better metabolism, but to deal with certain calories in a more efficient manner.

But both of these amino acids perform another vital function, and one we only saw addressed by PhenGold. L-Theanine and Tyrosine have also been researched to help with mood stabilization. That can really be a difference-maker because when we start a diet or exercise routine, our minds and our emotions can change. We can get discouraged, and even eating less sugar can make us feel down. By including Theanine and Tyrosine, PhenGold addresses these possible mood swings.

Looking for something universally well-liked is impossible. But 98% satisfaction is pretty close, and that’s what we found with PhenGold. You can buy it on their website for $119.99, which gets you two months plus a free third month.

Conclusion

The history of Diet Pills is fraught with danger and shady business practices. From tapeworms to amphetamines, there were products out there that could kill you as soon as help you lose weight.

Luckily we live in a more modern age. We have access to effective, legal, and safe alternatives to the products of the past. Whether we go with something with proprietary ingredients, like PhenQ, or something just for women in LeanBean, or something with high reviews like PhenGold, we can be sure we’re getting better products than in the past.

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