Acomplia diet drug

Wouldn’t it be great if you could lose weight just by taking a pill?That dream moved a step closer to reality last week when researchers released impressive results from a study of the experimental acomplia drug loss weight.Over two years, users lost an average of 19 pounds and kept the weight off. They also appeared to suffer fewer serious side effects than users of existing diet drugs such as Meridia and Xenical.”It is our most effective obesity drug yet,” said Dr. Michael Davidson of Radiant Research Chicago, one of 72 centers that participated in the study.No magic answer

Still, acomplia drug loss weight by itself won’t give you the body of a Brad Pitt or Jennifer Aniston. “There’s a big danger in people thinking that this pill will be the magic answer to their weight loss woes,” said Victoria Shanta- Retelny, a registered dietitian at Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s Wellness Institute. “It’s not a cure-all. You still have to focus on diet and exercise.”Results were announced at an American Heart Association meeting in New Orleans. The study included 3,040 obese people who were randomly assigned to take two different doses of Acomplia or an inactive placebo. They all were prescribed a moderate diet that, if followed, would cut 600 calories per day.Among the higher-dose Acomplia users, levels of good HDL cholesterol increased 25 percent, while bad triglycerides dropped 10 percent.And there was an impressive decrease in fat around the belly, which may be a better measure of heart disease risk than overall weight. An earlier study found that 44 percent of American adults have waistlines greater than the risk threshold of 40 inches in men and 35 inches in women. In the higher-dose acomplia drug loss weight group, waistlines shrank an average of 3.1 inches.The placebo group lost an average of 5 pounds, 14 pounds less than the average for those taking the higher dose of Acomplia.Sixty-three percent of the higher-dose Acomplia users lost at least 5 percent of their body weight, while 33 percent lost at least 10 percent.But is that sufficient? Say you’re 5 feet 10 inches tall and weigh 220 pounds. If you lose 10 percent of your body weight, you’ll still be a flabby 198 pounds.”For many people, a 5 or 10 percent weight loss is not enough to reach their goals and feel better about themselves,” said Dr. Robert Kushner, medical director of the Wellness Institute.Kushner nevertheless thinks Acomplia might help some people. “The more tools we can bring to bear, the better off we can be,” he said.For a minority of patients, diet pills work wonders. Kanisha Yates of Maywood, for example, lost 70 pounds on Meridia.But she’s the exception. A big problem with diet pills is that people stop taking them because their results are much more modest. In the Acomplia trial, for example, 44 percent of those who were given acomplia drug loss weight quit the drug before the two years were up.Troubled history for drugs”They want to go back to their ideal body weight,” said lead researcher Dr. Xavier Pi-Sunyer of St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York. “People sign up with dream ideas. After a while reality sets in, and they try something else.”Diet pills have had a troubled history. “There’s never been a diet drug approved that has had more benefits than risks,” said Dr. Sidney Wolfe of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group.Prescription and over-the-counter drugs generally have produced only modest weight loss, with some pills posing severe health risks.Some amphetamines have been banned because they’re addictive and cause psychotic behavior and brain damage. The “fen-phen” diet-pill combination was taken off the market after it was linked to heart valve damage. The government banned the herbal supplement ephedra after it was linked to strokes and anxiety.There’s little scientific evidence that herbal alternatives to ephedra, such as green tea and bitter orange, are safe and effective.’We need something better’That leaves three prescription drugs:*Phentermine (the “phen” in fen-phen) suppresses appetite, but works only for a few weeks because the body builds up resistance.*Meridia gives users a feeling of fullness and can be used long term. But it can increase blood pressure and heart rate and isn’t meant for heart patients.*Xenical blocks the absorption of dietary fat. But it can cause bowel changes, including gas, oily discharge and accidental bowel movements.Sandra Hughes of Orland Park has tried just about all of them. Fen- phen had no effect. She lost only three pounds on Meridia. And she felt the unpleasant side effects of Xenical, with no weight loss. “We need something better,” she said.

WEIGHT-LOSS DRUGS

Name Status How it works Side effects

Xenical Approved Inhibits fat absorption Gastro/bowel problems

Meridia Approved Appetite suppression Constipation, dry mouth

Amphetamines Approved for short-term use Appetite suppression Insomnia, mood swings

(phentermine, didrex, etc.)Acomplia Will seek approval Appetite suppressant Nausea, depression, irritability, anxiety