Weight Loss Pill: a Magic Bullet?
There’s a new pill announced, called Contrave, that claims
to help obese patients over the difficulties of losing weight.
A combination of two older drugs, Wellbutrin, an
anti-depressant, and Naltrexone, used in addiction and alcoholism treatment,
the maker, Orexigen Therapeutics Inc., is claiming it is testing well in
clinical trials.
The manufacturer’s claim is that the drugs work in the
deepest part of the brain, the hypothalamus, which regulates metabolism,
hunger, and the endocrine system.
Evidently, a side effect of Wellbutrin is some weight loss, which isn’t
entirely understood. This effect
is said to wear-off, but then the Naltrexone anti-addiction formula kicks in.
I’m not a medical doctor, so I won’t comment on the medical
aspects. I do want to say that
part of this news is encouraging: that obesity is helped by tending to
psychological and behavioral aspects of the problem, which manifest as
depression. I’ve long said that
losing weight needs to be a combination of nutritional changes, emotional
therapy, recreation and physical treatments, and spiritual practice.
Generally, I am against panacea weight loss pills and
drugs. At best, I believe them to
be short-term, drastic approaches.
This appears to be the case with this new drug as well, but it’s not
been around long enough to do long-term studies. If it’s an initial therapy that helps people get started and
motivated toward making changes in their eating habits, and on the road to
feeling better about themselves, then it’s worth considering. Any medications need to be combined
with healthy eating, nutritional education, regular exercise, and emotional and
spiritual therapy and practices.
Be cautious, however, as with any medication there will be side
effects, and we don’t yet know what those are long-term. Reported in the initial study were
increased nausea and headaches.
Consider this, too, what has been the long-term
effectiveness and safety of weight loss pills? There aren’t many still on the market; they have to keep
creating new ones as the others, each offering big promises and hope, haven’t
proved to be the breakthrough and easy solutions we had wished for. Some have
even been unsafe.
What do you think of weight loss pills? Please comment, and share this with
friends.
Join me on Twitter.com/drnorrischumley
What do you think of weight loss pills? Please comment, and share this with
friends.
Join me on Twitter.com/drnorrischumley
Here’s a news article about it, from Reuters.
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