To Pill or Not?

My officemate and I talked about weight loss (blame it on our culture's fixation on weight) and she has asked me if she knew of anyone who took diet pills that actually worked. I told her that I don't know of any, but also told her that if she's interested in taking them (she's in the big side, you know), she should consult with her doctor first, especially since she has asthma. I mean, maybe there would be some limitations, and boy if asthma is involved I surely would want her to know about it first. I have talked to her why suddenly she thought of taking these pills when there are other seemingly safer alternatives to it? There's our little gym in our office which she can use. Her food intake is also something she should carefully look into. I read in a book that the first thing that one should do when coming up with a plan on how to lose weight is to make a list of what goes in her body and determine which of these can be considered "sinful." She told me she has tried to exercise regularly, monitor her food intake, and control her "sinful" indulgences, but to no avail. That's why she has considered taking the pills. I hope that she would seriously think about this first, and like what I said, consult the doctor before taking anything.

Now that I think about it, my previous "rants" about me trying to lose what I consider excess pounds, actually pales in comparison to others.