Laxitives and Ipecac Syrup

Laxatives
Pills or liquid, herbal or otherwise, laxative abuse is a common form of "weight control" in people suffering with Eating Disorders. The use of laxatives as a way to lose or control weight is not only dangerous, but irrational. The actual purpose of taking a laxative is to stimulate the large bowel to empty, which occurs only after the food and it's calories for energy have been absorbed through the small intestines. Essentially, a person taking laxatives to control weight is only going to cause their body to lose fluid, which can potentionally be followed by periods of water retention and an appearance of bloating (causing the sufferer to want to lose more weight and ingest more laxatives). The reason people suffering from eating disorders seem to lose weight while taking laxatives is because in most cases they are increasingly watching calorie intake and restricting food consumption, inducing vomiting, and/or compulsively exercising.
Continued laxative use can cause bloating, cramping, dehydration, electrolyte disturbances and imbalances, cardiac arrhythmias, irregular heart beat and heart attack, renal problems, and death.
Phenolphthalein, a popular ingredient previously found in many brands of laxatives has now been recalled by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration, United States) due to studies indicating that it has been linked to cancer.
Withdrawal symptoms can be expected in stopping the use of laxatives after a continued period of using them as a "weight loss" method. These include, abdominal cramping, mild to severe constipation, bloating, mood swings and general feelings of fatigue and "feeling sick." In less severe cases the symptoms will usually subside in about 2 weeks, but in cases where a person have ingested handfuls or more laxatives on a regular basis, it may take longer and require medical assistance.

Diuretics
Sufferers of Eating Disorders sometimes use diuretics as a way to attempt controlling their weight. Again, this is dangerous and irrational. Diuretics work on reducing water retention, and only decrease the amount of water in the body... this can cause dehydration and electrolyte imbalances and specifically potassium deficiencies that can result in hospitalization. Continued use can lead to long and short-term fluid retention even when the diuretics are discontinued.

Ipecac Syrup
The use of Ipecac Syrup can cause instant death! Using Syrup of Ipecac for anything other than its purpose (to induce vomitting in cases of accidental poisoning, or drug overdose) causes systemic toxicity which can cause weakness, tenderness and stiffness of muscles, cardiac disease and heart failure, coma, seizures, shock, increase in blood pressure, with possible hemorrhage, dehydration, aspiration pneumonia and death.
This cumulative effect (taking it more than once, for reasons other than its indications) can increase the possibility of serious adverse effects, and if ipecac fails to produce vomitting, patients should go to the hospital IMMEDIATELY.






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