You can research or find just about anything on the World Wide Web, but health experts are now warning against choosing a diet from the Internet.

One local woman who suffered serious health problems after following a diet plan off the web shared her experience as a warning to others.

Christin Sherburne's two preschool children keep her busy. She also stays busy warning others about the dangers of following online diets. Last year when she weighed 240 pounds, Sherburne searched the Internet and found a weight loss plan.

"All the success stories sounded really good so I thought I would give it a try," Sherburne said.

She says she paid a $60 fee to become an online member. After following a low calorie, low carbohydrate eating plan, she lost 100 pounds in five months, but she also developed serious health problems.

"I've lost a lot of hair and my menstrual cycle ceased and I was having chest pains," she said.

Nutritionist Sally Bowman says such dramatic weight loss can lead to other medical complications, especially if the dieter fails to first get a doctor's approval.

"If someone starts on this diet and they have for example mild kidney disease or some heart issues, they run the risk of seriously losing kidney function or ending up on dialysis," Bowman said.

Bowman warns about the dangers of following drastic weight loss plans pulled from the web.

"They need to look at who is writing this particular website. Who is behind it? Is it a commercial program? Dot.org or dot.edu is one tip, but dot.coms mean they are probably selling a product," she said.

As for Sherburne, she says, "There is no one magic bullet."

She's now under a doctor's care and hopes to keep the weight off and stay healthy through careful diet and exercise.

Sherburne followed the "Kimkins Diet." Now its founder is accused of posting fraudulent success stories on the website.

In a statement emailed to KVUE News, company spokesman Heidi Diaz described the diet as "a safe and effective weight reduction program. Any inaccuracies in our website were not intended to mislead or in any way defraud existing or potential members."

Sherburne is among about a dozen plaintiffs filing a class action lawsuit against the Kimkins Diet and its founder.