There is absolutely nothing to be afraid of. My doctor told me he even takes it once in awhile so I decided that was good enough for me.
I started two weeks ago tomorrow, Monday, and have been doing fairly well. Not as I expected but now I am losing again. Six pounds in the first week and then the second week I went up a few but now I am on a losing streak again and need to start exercising. That definitely will help.
Good luck - you will love it.