Nine months and nearly 60 pounds later, Jan Colonna will tell anyone who will listen how “the pink drink” has saved her life.

Social media feeds are filled with people touting the weight loss powers of Plexus Slim.

Described as an all-natural weight loss product, the program consists of a water additive mix and pill taken after one eats breakfast.

“It is a simple drink and accelerator that you take after you eat breakfast,” Colonna said. “Then you go on about your day as usual. It works by curbing appetite, suppressing cravings for sugar and leveling blood sugar, lipid and cholesterol levels, making it easier for your body to break down the bad fats in your body so it is released. You start losing inches and pounds, and you gain lots of energy.”

Obesity in the U.S. is driving rising rates of diabetes and hypertension with stroke-causing conditions affecting almost 3 in 10 Americans. Excess weight increases the risk of developing heart disease, stroke and other serious conditions, according to the U. S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

In Colonna’s case, that was absolute true.

“I started my Plexus journey the end of November 2012,” she said. “The past nine months have been life changing for me physically and emotionally.

“Before I heard about Plexus, I was in constant pain every day of my life and was depending on pain pills and epidurals just to make it through each day,” she said. “Now I am totally free of both.”

How it works: Half an hour before a meal – it does not matter which meal, it can be breakfast, lunch or dinner – pour the Plexus Slim powder into a 12 ounce glass/bottle of water, stir/shake and drink. Combined with an accelerator pill, it suppresses the appetite and levels out blood sugar and lipid and cholesterol levels.

Colonna said she’s lost 59 pounds and four clothes sizes – but that was only one of many benefits.

“I now can keep up with my very active teenage daughter,” she said. “I am finally living and not just existing.”

According to the company’s website, Plexus Slim, when used as part of a daily hydration regimen, promotes:

• Loss of weight and inches by burning fat, not muscle;

• Healthy blood sugar levels;

• Healthy cholesterol and lipid levels; and,

• Healthy willpower over food choices.

One of the key ingredients in the product, steroidal glycoside extract, is estimated to be 100,000 times more potent than glucose, so as soon as it is sensed by the hypothalamus, the body is “told” that it is full, thus inhibiting overeating.

And like any dietary supplement, potentials users are urged to speak with a doctor before starting the product.

But for Colonna, the program is the way she is achieving her goal of “feeling better and being better.”