The First Over-The Counter Obesity Pills Have Arrived

The US FDA has at long last approved a diet pill which can be bought over-the-counter and which is aimed at adults suffering from obesity. But will this new pill work and is it going to be the solution for the thousands of obese people who find that losing weight is extremely her?

To a certain extend we already have the answers to these questions as this is not a new drug but one which has been in wide use in the US for several years. The drug, which is known as Orlistat, is in fact simply a half-dose version of the current prescription drug marketed under the name of Xenical.

The time honored route to weight loss in cases of obesity is for doctors to start by recommending a course of diet and exercise and, if this does not work, to turn to assisting dieters with drugs like Xenical. As a final solution, if this does not work, sufferers may be offered gastric bypass surgery as the ultimate weight loss solution. This brief look at the background to treating morbid obesity provides us with an idea of exactly how this new diet pill is to be employed.

Whatever people may wish this is definitely not a matter of taking a pill one or twice a day and magically watching the pounds drop off. Orlistat works in part by stopping the absorption of fat and is most efficient when it is taken three times each day with meals containing approximately fifteen grams of fat. If it is taken will meals containing in excess of the recommended fifteen grams of fat then taking Orlistat could lead to bowel problems.

The use of Orlistat could also onstruct the absorption of some vitamins and users have to take daily multivitamin tablets. This drug is not advised for people taking any type of blood thinning agent or being treated for diabetes or thyroid problems.

Without an accompanying program of diet and exercise Orlistat will have little if any affect and you are only likely to get benefit from its use together with a strict program of diet and exercise. Nevertheless, even here the results are likely to be minor and many people question whether the likely results (which are based upon the known results experienced with Xenical) make using Orlistat a useful operation.

Perhaps one additional question which we ought to ask is exactly why the FDA has approved this drug for over-the-counter use at this time. Obesity rates are rising at epidemic proportions and we see mounting pressure to find an answer to this problem before it literally runs out of control. Many people are convinced that the approval of Orlistat is nothing more than the FDA's reaction to public pressure.

Should Orlistat turn out to be of little if any use it may in fact do greater harm than good as people suffering from obesity turn the Orlistat as the solution to their problem and away from the need for a strict diet and exercise program.

GastricBypassFacts.info looks at treating morbid obesity and also looks at the value of obesity pills.