Weight loss medication that targets
Jill Jin, a general internist at the Northwestern Medical Group in Chicago, who wrote the article. So is it enough for a doctor to tell a chronically obese person to lose weight and leave it at that. A new breakdown of these options, released today (Aug. Everyone knows that permanent lifestyle changes are very hard to make, Wyatt says. But that simple way of thinking is increasingly under fire from experts. Weight loss benefits continue only as long as the drugs are taken, so users also need to develop healthy habits. In recent years, however, new drugs to combat obesity have moved onto the market. However, weight loss drugs -- like Xenical and Meridia -- do exist. The longstanding wisdom was that obesity resulted from a failure of willpower. 18) in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), highlights the promise and perils of each of these medications, which range from appetite suppressors to stimulants. Patients who are prescribed these drugs are monitored closely. This article is from the WebMD Feature Archive. Wyatt and Bray both stress that anyone who needs to lose weight should try lifestyle changes first. If only people would just stop eating so much and get off the couch, no one would be obese. The benefit of these medications is that they help move weight loss along more quickly than diet and exercise alone, thus encouraging patients to stick to their lifestyle changes, Jin said. Drugs might also be helpful for people who are merely overweight (with a BMI of 27 or higher) but who also have health conditions brought on by their extra pounds, such as high blood pressure or heart disease. For most people, the prescription for weight loss is pretty basic: Eat less, move more. It was first approved in 1999 by the FDA for use with a prescription, and then in 2007, it was approved for over-the-counter use. To many people, any weight loss drug seems like it must be a scam. Wyatt and Bray both point out that we routinely use medication for other conditions that can be controlled by changes in diet and exercise.
WebMD archives content after 2 years to ensure our readers can easily find the most timely content. Still, only five drugs (or drug combinations) have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the long-term treatment of obesity. Colon Cancer on the Rise Among Young Adults. Many people, including doctors, have a strong aversion to using weight loss drugs to treat obesity, according to Holly Wyatt, MD, an endocrinologist at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. To find the most current information, please enter your topic of interest into our search box. For instance, diabetes and high blood pressure can both be helped substantially by changes in your lifestyle. At the most basic level, your weight is determined by the balance between the amount of energy you take in and the amount you expend -- the food you eat and the calories you burn. Video: Cancer Takes a Toll on a Small Town. Asprin: The Wonder Drug in Your Medicine Cabinet. As American waistlines have expanded, pharmaceutical companies have been searching for drugs that can shrink those waistlines again. Bray, MD, professor of medicine at Louisiana State University, agrees that the traditional view of obesity -- as essentially a moral failing -- is wrong. Sleep Loss Tied to Changes in Gut Bacteria. They all must be accompanied by following a healthful diet and exercising, and their effects on the scale are moderate compared with the dramatic weight loss seen in people who undergo gastric bypass surgery, said Dr. And pharmaceutical companies across the globe are industriously working on more. Weight Loss Drugs: Pros and Cons of 5 Approved Prescriptions. However, Jin told Live Science, these medications can benefit certain patients. According to guidelines released by the Endocrine Society in January 2015, these pharmaceuticals are appropriate only for people who qualify as obese, meaning they have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher. But doctors still prescribe medication for both conditions.
