A SCOTS herbalist's sticky willy and seaweed pills are set to become the latest slimming craze 100 years on.

William Box first combined the two ingredients when he created his Slimwell anti-fat slimming tablets in 1913.

A century on, his recipe has been awarded a Traditional Herbal Registration licence. It means the slimming pill will be in shops just in time for the annual battle to shift the festive bulge.

Trading under the name Quantrim, the pill's ingredients include bladderwrack a type of seaweed and the commonly found weed cleavers, also known as sticky willies.

Both ingredients have long been known to have health benefits. Seaweed, which is full of nutrients but also suppresses appetite, is a "superfood" popular with celebrities such as Victoria Beckham, Britney Spears, Gwyneth Paltrow and Madonna.

And cleavers have been used in health recipes dating back to Roman times.

But put together, the two plants combine to raise the body's meta-bolism, helping it to burn more calories naturally.

That's because both are a source of a chemical called chelated iodine, which the body uses to create a thyroid-stimulating hormone.

If the body's level of this hormone is too low, it can lead to weight gain.

A Quantrim spokesperson said: "It's a safe, natural weight-loss aid that will enable everyone to achieve their ideal weight with less struggle than dieting alone.

"Quantrim reduces hunger pains as your appetite is curbed. As your natural energy levels and metabolism increase, it burns fat and cellulite."