Losing weight

If you have ever considered losing weight, you have probably heard of the various kinds of diet pills available. Diet pills claim to "melt away the fat." They sound like the perfect solution to shed a few pounds, but research tells a different story. Diet pills became popular in 1996. The most common ingredients were Redux and fenfluramin/phentermine, which posed as appetite suppressants. The pills seemed to suck up the fat, and people were losing anywhere between 25-50 pounds in months. The FDA no longer approves the use of Redux or fen/phen, but new ingredients have made diet pills just as popular. An herb called ephedra is currently the most common substance in diet pills. Ephedra is still available for over the counter distribution, but the FDA is researching the side effects. Many cases of heart diseases and strokes have been linked to the herb. The use of diet pills is not recommended, but the advice does not stop many Americans. Diet pills are dangerous and should not be taken. The pills should be avoided because they do not provide a safe or effective way to lose weight, cause heart valve disease and other complications, and are used as a replacement for physical activity.

[Jeanne next offers a paragraph with evidence and explanation for her first stated reason. Within this paragraph, after providing a topic sentence and further exposition, she introduces and tags her evidence by identifying the profession and source of the quotation, increasing her own credibility as an author on this subject: Christine Haller, M.D., a medical toxicologist, was interviewed about herbal weight loss for an article in Health magazine. The article notes, "In Haller's opinion, the risk far outweighs the potential benefit. When people ask her if they should try ephedra, she responds with a question of her own: 'Do you want to lose 10 pounds that badly?'" (Gower 72).

After completing her argument for her first reason, Jeanne then offers two paragraphs with evidence