The US Food and Drug Administration has at long last approved a diet pill which is available over-the-counter and which is aimed at adults suffering from obesity. But just how effective is this new pill going to be and will it be the answer for the many thousands of obesity sufferers who find that losing weight is exceptionally hard work?
To a certain degree we already have the answers to these questions as this is not a new drug at all but one that has been widely used in the US for several years. The drug, which is known as Orlistat, is in reality nothing more than a half-dose version of the presently available prescription drug sold under the name of Xenical.
The usual route to weight loss for obesity sufferers is for doctors to start by recommending a period of diet and exercise and, if this does not work, to turn to assisting sufferes with a range of drugs including Xenical. As a last resort, if this still does not work, sufferers might be offered gastric bypass surgery as the ultimate solution to their weight problem. This brief look at the background to treating morbid obesity provides us with an indication of just how this obesity pill is to be employed.
Whatever people may want this is most certainly not a matter of simply taking a pill daily and magically shedding pounds. Orlistat works by partially blocking the absorption of fat and is at its most effective when it is taken three times each day with meals that contain in the region of fifteen grams of fat. If it is taken will meals that contain more than fifteen grams of fat taking Orlistat could cause bowel problems.
Using Orlistat can also hamper the absorption of some vitamins and users should take daily multivitamin tablets. The drug is not recommended for people taking any sort of blood thinning medicine or under treatment for thyroid problems or diabetes.
Without an accompanying diet and exercise program Orlistat will have very little or no affect at all and you will only receive benefit from using it while following a strict diet and exercise program. Nonetheless, even with diet and exercise weight loss is likely to be minor and a lot of people question whether the results (which are predicted from the known results seen with Xenical) make the use of Orlistat worthwhile.
Perhaps one further question which we ought to ask is just why the FDA has approved the over-the-counter use of this drug at this time. Obesity rates are now growing at epidemic proportions and there is considerable pressure to find an answer to this problem before it literally runs out of control. A lot of people contend that the licensing of Orlistat for over-the-counter use is little more than the FDA bowing to public pressure.
If Orlistat turns out to be of very little or no use at all it might actually do more harm than good as people suffering from obesity turn the the drug as the answer to their problem and away from the need to set themselves a strict program of diet and exercise.
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