Weight loss Drugs, best prescription medications, new and FDA approved drugs that work to help with losing pounds, risk and side effects, caution and danger

Long-term treatment with the weight loss drugs orlistat, sibutramine or rimonabant produces slight weight loss, but all three drugs influence cardiovascular risk profiles in different ways and have different side effects. An alternative to weight loss drugs is a natural weight control pill called Diet Rx pill.
   For obese people who have difficulty losing weight through diet and exercise alone, there are a number of FDA-approved weight loss drugs that may help temporarily, but with some side effects. On average, individuals who use weight loss drugs lose about 5 percent of their original weight, though some will lose less and some more. There are natural over the counter non prescription alternative herbal products that work, including Diet Rx.

High drop out rate with weight loss drugs
High drop-out rates -- 30% to 40% -- limits the effectiveness of these weight loss drugs.

Risk and side effects
Long-term therapy with the anti obesity drugs orlistat (Xenical or over the counter Alli), sibutramine (Meridia) or rimonabant (Acomplia) produces only slight weight loss while increasing the risks for heart disease and other adverse effects. Although patients taking these prescription drugs may lose a few pounds, in a review of long term studies, orlistat reduced weight by 3 kg, sibutramine by 4 kg, and rimonabant by 4.7 kg. Not only are these weight loss drugs expensive, but the side effects negate any potential weight loss benefit.

Effectiveness of weight loss drugs
Patients taking these weight loss drugs are more likely than those taking placebo to experience a 5% to 10% reduction in weight. In a review of long term studies, compared with placebo, orlistat reduced weight by 2.9 kg, sibutramine by 4.2 kg, and rimonabant by 4.7 kg.

Update April 2010
A trio of new obesity drugs is moving closer to market, but all three have problems that could trip them up with regulators or limit future sales. Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc, Orexigen Therapeutics Inc and Vivus Inc have filed for U.S. Food and Drug Administration review of their experimental drugs. All three companies are seeking commercial partners for the products. But that is proving to be a slow process, even though the world's biggest drugmakers are eager to tap into the next potential blockbuster. "Isn't it interesting it's not Lilly, or Pfizer or Glaxo or Merck, or any of the big drug companies?" said Dr. Mitchell Roslin, chief of bariatric surgery at Northern Westchester Medical Center in Mt. Kisco, New York. "That tells you how complex it is and how nervous they are about this subject." The last successful diet treatment was a cocktail nicknamed fen-phen -- the generic stimulant phentermine combined with either fenfluramine or dexfenfluramine, similar drugs that were recalled in 1997 after they were linked to heart valve damage. DrugmakerWyeth, which Pfizer acquired in October, set aside more than $21 billion to settle fen-phen litigation. Another obesity drug developed by Sanofi-Aventis SA never reached the U.S. market due to psychiatric side effects, including suicidal thoughts and depression. Thomson Pharma has forecast 2013 sales of $418 million for Arena's lorcaserin, $357 million for Vivus' Qnexa and $325 million for Orexigen's Contrave.

Contrave prescription drug
Orexigen Therapeutics Inc said in July 2009 that three late-stage trials of its Contrave experimental weight-loss drug had met their goals/ The San Diego-based company said the results supported its plan to file for U.S. regulatory approval in the first half of next year as they exceeded Food and Drug Administration benchmarks for clinically significant weight loss. Orexigen said 48 percent of obese patients on a higher dose of Contrave lost at least 5 percent of their body weight, compared with 16 percent of those given a placebo in one trial. Contrave is a pill that combines the antidepressant Wellbutrin, known generically as bupropion, with a sustained-release version of naltrexone, an opioid blocker used to treat alcoholism and other addictions. The company also has a second weight-loss drug candidate, Empatic.

Benefit of orlistat weight loss drug
Orlistat reduces the incidence of diabetes and improves levels of total and LDL cholesterol, blood pressure, and glycemic control in patients with diabetes but increases rates of gastrointestinal side effects and lowers HDL levels. Orlistat prevents the absorption of fat. It improves blood pressure and blood sugar control in patients with diabetes but increases gastrointestinal side effects, lowers HDL cholesterol levels, and lowers the absorption of fat soluble vitamins. Some claim that it may increase the risk for colon cancer.

Benefit of sibutramine weight loss drug
Sibutramine lowers HDL and triglyceride levels but raised blood pressure and pulse rate. Sibutramine is chemically related to amphetamines. It lowers HDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels but raises blood pressure and pulse rate.

Abbott Laboratories Inc's weight-loss drug Meridia should be banned immediately because of heart-related risks, a consumer group said in December 2009 in a petition to U.S. regulators. Public Citizen said early results from a large international study called Scout added to the group's previous concerns that Meridia could cause heart problems. "The fact that (Meridia) actually increased the number and percentage of cardiovascular events (in the study) ... should mandate its immediate removal from the market," Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group, said in a petition filed with the Food and Drug Administration.

Benefit of rimonabant weight loss drug
Rimonabant improves HDL and triglyceride levels, as well as blood pressure and glycemic control in diabetic patients but increases mood disorders, such as depression or anxiety. Rimonabant improves HDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels, as well as blood pressure and blood sugar control in diabetic patients but increases mood disorders, such as depression or anxiety. and increases the risk for suicide.

Drug companies and weight loss drugs
14-May-2008 - A petition by drug firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) requesting that weight loss claims be treated as disease claims maintains that there is no credible science to back up weight loss ingredients used in dietary supplements. GSK filed the petition, together with the American Dietetic Association, The Obesity Society and Shaping America's Health, an association for weight management. The petition says that obesity and overweight are significant risk factors for certain diseases, and so natural products promoting weight loss should be treated as drugs. However, the petitioners also claim that "there is no credible evidence whatsoever to support any type of qualified health claim for a weight loss supplement".
   It appears that drug companies feel threatened by natural weight loss supplements and are trying to prevent the market growth of natural supplements that may compete against weight loss drugs.

F.D.A. says some Natural Diet Pills are Laced With Drugs
Feb 2009 - Retailers like GNC and the Vitamin Shoppe sold StarCaps without a prescription but the Food and Drug Administration now says StarCaps, promoted as natural dietary supplements using papaya, could be hazardous to your health. In violation of the law, the agency has found, the capsules also contained a potent pharmaceutical drug called bumetanide which can have serious side effects.

Weight loss drug questions
Q. Does sibutramine weight loss drug cause erectile dysfunction?
   A. We have not seen any reports that this weight loss drug causes impotence or has a significant effect on sexual health.