Hi Everyone

I'm supposed to start the pill today however, I'm too scared..I eat really well during the day and then at night I usually hang out with my best friend playing pennies at our local casino..with the pennies comes free drinks!!! I usually have  about 4  or 5 Miller 64's before the end of the night.. "0 fat, 64 calories" ..Here is my concern..Those TE's I've been reading about are horrifiying...I don't ever want that to happen to me!!! Could someone share a story with me about their first day..Also, I am never close to home for days...I work everyday and just wonder if I made a mistake buying these pills...

Thanks for any tips you can offer.

Through God all things are possible

 I started last Monday and have had no hint of the TEs.  I haven't had an alcohol since I started, but I thought you only had to worry about the fat to avoid the TEs. 

Just make sure to count the drinks in your daily calorie total. They won't make you have TEs, only going over your fat intake per a meal will do that. However, they can still make you gain weight if you don't calculate them in, as calories are bad as well. Thats about 320 calories, about double a snack suggestion, so you will want to cut back some calroies from your other meals to save room for those when you plan to go out.

I haven't had a TE yet, and I've been on Alli for over a month now. It's very easy for me. You will only have a TE if you eat over what you are suppose to eat - which is 15-19g of fat per meal. I struggled with actually meeting this at first, it was more than I even ate before - most of my foods were just stuffed with cals and carbs and salt. Once you start meeting the fat, the other stuff starts balancing out, too. I was very, very scared of TEs - you'll learn once you start that it's not as bad as it seems. Most of  the horrible reviews are from people that didn't follow the directions - they just thought it was a miricle pill. It's not. It's a tool to help you change your lifestyle.

 This is wonderful input.  I too am a bit apprehensive, but ready to get started.  I was going to start today as well, but thought better of it after reading that any fat in your system for 2-3 days before could cause an affect.  I decided to wait until Tues.  when I know I can be close to home, and also after giving myself time to truly get on the low-fat diet.

 Copper;

thanks so much for that message! Made me feel much better..I think I will start the pill within the next few days. I do have one more concern..I have read numerous blogs on here about alli and Hair Loss..The people that wrote them seem pretty adament that it was the alli? Any information on that???

I've been on Alli for 14 months. The ONLY TE's I had were from eating fried foods. It happened once, and believe me, it didn't happen again. :) It's a good idea to start the diet a week before starting the pills. This gives you a good chance to clean up your diet before starting the pills.

There is no evidence that Alli is causing the hair loss. It is not one of the listed side effects and I don't believe it came up in any of the medication trials. If you look up Orlistat, the medication in Alli, you will also find that any side effects were at the higher doses for Xenical, the prescription strength of 120 mg. It is possible that the people experiencing hair loss are not taking a multivitamin at night and/or are not eating enough of the proper fats/proteins that a body needs for hair production.

As with ANY medication, some people will react more negatively than others. It's the same chance you take with ANY medication or supplement, whether prescription or over-the-counter. All you can do is make the choice to use it or not based on many sources of information and research. Weigh the pros and cons, then decide what YOU want to do. If you have serious concerns you may want to talk it over with your doctor.

I started over a month ago, as I said, and I've actually expierenced LESS hair falling out than before. I have long, thick, curly and frizzy hair that I shed like a dog in summer everyday. While I've been on Alli, I barely lose half of what I was.  Even when I lost all that, everyday, you couldn't tell. I contribute the slowing down of hair loss to my better diet, and indirectly Alli.

It IS perfectly natural to lose about 100-200 strands of hair a day from breakage  and what have you, Alli or not. If you wear a lot of product or keep your hair up, you will appear to be losing more in the shower or something because that would prevent the hairs that naturally fall out from leaving your head, so you could have 2-3 days worth stuck.

Just keep in mind that some hair loss through your day is perfectly natural. If you don't take a mutlivitamin or you cut out a lot of stuff from your diet such as all good fats, protein, etc, this is also likely going to make your hair more fragile, and Alli strongly advices you not to do that, and to find a good balance. Alli tells you to take a MV, it's one of the first things on the box, so I am surprised when I see people say they aren't (usually not on these fourms, but others I go to). It's very important!

I think most people (perhaps not all, but most), that say they lose hair could of possibly been following the wrong sort of diet. You should meet your fat/cal intake Alli tells you to - or only go safely below that, and not to an extreme. You don't have to eat fat-free EVERYTHING. Having a light dinner? Put real dressing on your salad! Don't strive to keep it as low as possible, just strive to keep it at your limit. People that only want to eat 3-5g of fat per meal just aren't doing it right, and that is bad for your body.

All in all, I think theres no doubt Alli is indirectly responsible for these peoples hair loss. It's pretty hard to get it all right and balanced at the start. However, its the change in your diet, lack of MV and the fact that Alli will block out some nutriants that cause it - not the medication itself. If you notice significant hairloss, check your diet really good and make sure you're well balanced. Make sure your MV has everything Alli blocks.

 You are great! Thanks so much for the information you have provided me...You have been extremly helpful :)

I guess I just need to get serious and get on with it..