I'm extremely cautious about recommending slimming pills or anti-obesity medication as they're more formally called. Few people managed to diet successfully with them and, more importantly, keep weight off and many became physically hooked or addicted to them. But while the concept worked in laboratory rats, it hasn't been safe or effective in humans. Healthy eating By far the healthiest and most effective way to control your weight is through long-term healthy eating and regular exercise (you will need to do at least 150 minutes a week of seriously-out-of-puff exercise, ideally broken down into daily chunks) supported by counselling and behaviour modification, which you should find at a slimming club. The only exceptions are people with conditions such as a clinically under-active thyroid gland, who are generally ill with other symptoms too. Very few people benefit from them in the long term, and they should be viewed generally as a last resort, to help people who are grossly overweight, have already lost some weight and are now struggling to lose more. These drugs, when used with a weight-reducing diet and exercise, help people to lose more weight than a weight-reducing diet and exercise alone. Amphetamine-type slimming pills were popular 30 to 40 years ago, but it took some time for doctors to realise they can be addictive and harmful.