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Evaluating Diet Programs and Products, Page 4

Prescription Medication Approaches

Image of a prescription pill bottle.
With the ever rising levels of obesity in the United States, interest in finding a drug that can treat it is rising as well. Medications that suppress appetite by acting directly on the central nervous system have been available since the 1960’s, but these were related to amphetamines and had the same addictive qualities and side-effects. Two drugs, Fenfluramine and Phentermine (nick-named “fen-phen”), that had an effect on the neurotransmitter serotonin were seen in the mid 1990’s.

These drugs were being prescribed to help reduce appetite until they were removed from the market due to problems with heart valve defects and primary pulmonary hypertension. Another drug, Orlistat, was released in 1999 and acted by blocking the absorption and digestion of dietary in the diet. Ingested fat (about thirty percent) is lost through a person’s stools which are often loose. Scientists hope to develop a drug that acts by changing the “set point” and affect the rate of breakdown of fat stored in the adipocytes, but finding a substance that can do that and not cause body harm has not been successful.

When contemplating the use of prescription medications you must consider, besides the side effects, that these substances have only temporary results. As soon as the medication is discontinued, the “set point” system is back in place. They are not a “quick fix”, but should be part of a program for lifetime changes in food choices and activity levels.