We’re in the middle of winter and in a month or two, there will be a rush by people to get into their ‘summer bodies’ just in time for the warm season. The pressure to quickly have the perfect body leaves a lot of people vulnerable and places them at risk of physical and mental health issues. These include addiction, psychotic episodes, stomach ailments and eating disorders.
Monday, 23 June, marks the beginning of the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (SANCA) Awareness Week. South African healthcare professionals have raised the alarm on the long-term health impacts of misuse of weight-loss drugs, taken in higher than recommended doses or used without a prescription and proper medical care for planned weight loss. Body size dissatisfaction With almost half 45.
3% of South Africans over the age of 15 being “highly dissatisfied” with their body size, the risk of abuse of weight -loss medications is likely to be high, said Dr Kate Mawson, member of the South African Society of Psychiatrists (SASOP). “Some people, especially adolescents, young women, certain athletes and models, are under enormous pressure to be thin,” averred the doctor. “This may lead to trying different substances, medications, diets or behaviours to lose weight.
If these behaviours become a habit, then an eating disorder may result,” she said. Misuse of prescription weight medications Dr Mawson said misuse of prescription weight-loss medications, over-the-counte.