Herbal diet teas work either as a stimulant or a laxative. Stimulants encourage weight loss by speeding up your heart rate and metabolism, while laxative teas increase bowel movements. All assist in the weight-loss process by suppressing your appetite, minimizing water retention, or making you more active. Natural herbs make it a more popular and seemingly safer choice over standard weight-loss medications.

On the Other: It Can and Has Killed People

The FDA has documented at least four deaths of young women resulting from the use of diet teas. Ephedra and senna are only two of the many herbs that can cause a slew of negative side effects, including nervousness, cramping, difficulty breathing and sometimes death. Without any government or FDA regulation over herbal products, the efficacy of these teas or the possibly fatal side effects of the herbs in diet teas are unknown and unstudied.

Bottom Line

For the relatively small and temporary assistance that diet teas offer in weight loss, their consumption can be deemed a higher risk than necessary. People who wish to try them despite the risks should monitor their heart rates and blood pressure on a daily basis. Anyone who experiences extreme negative side effects should cease drinking the teas and seek medical advice.

Source:

CVS: Herbal Industry Cover-Up

DocShop: What Are Diet Teas and How Do They Work?

Vanderbilt University: Ephedrine and Its Effect on Weight Loss