A new weight loss drug that has been hailed as the latest treatment to fight obesity in England, is to be evaluated by health authorities in New Zealand.


The pill, Acomplia, made by the French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi-Aventis, is thought to help curb a person's appetite and to help reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease.


Dubbed 'the wonder pill', studies have found that it cuts body weight by up to 10 percent within one year.

Available through a prescription in the UK, now the drug is to be marketed in New Zealand.
The drug is currently under evaluation by health officials in New Zealand.


According to the New Zealand Herald, the drug has been hailed as a breakthrough in treating obesity by some in the medical fraternity overseas on the basis of interim study results.



Source: All Headline News

A revolutionary new drug which helps people lose weight has been launched in the UK.


It causes weight loss by blocking the brain's craving signals, suppressing the appetite.


It is the first drug of its kind because as well as aiding weight loss, it also regulates diabetes and manages cholesterol.
The drug, called Acomplia, is made by the French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi-Aventis, and has been used successfully in clinical trials.


The results revealed patients who took the drug lost weight and their waistlines shrank.

Professor John Betteridge, a leader in the field of medicine who reviewed the clinical trials, said the results were "fascinating".

He said:

"This is a useful new medicine to help overweight people at risk of heart attacks. After a year, people on the trial had lost up to eight kilograms. It is particularly effective at reducing weight around the waist.
"For overweight people, it is important to change lifestyle first but for some that doesn't work so this new medicine will help them."

A tablet must be taken every morning before breakfast but for the best results, doctors also recommend patients follow a reduced-calorie diet and exercise regularly.


The pills are available from today on prescription from GPs and privately after being given the EU seal of approval. However, GPs will only prescribe it to obese people with other risk factors such as diabetes.

A spokeswoman for Sanofi-Aventis said:

"We believe the right patient for Acomplia is overweight with type two diabetes or low levels of good cholesterol (HDL) or high levels of bad blood fats.
"It will benefit these people the most because it will also provide improvement above and beyond weight loss alone."

Source: The Sun Online

Metformin can induce long-term weight loss in obese, non-diabetic adolescents, and could possibly be useful in a regimen to help achieve weight loss in adolescents, who may have developed type 2 diabetes type due to overweight, according to a study presented here at the Endocrine Society's 88th Annual Meeting (ENDO).


The increase of obesity in children and adolescents is reported to be the most significant factor for the current rise in diabetes type II among youths.


Previous studies have shown that short-term metformin therapy is associated with weight loss, however, whether such weight loss persists over time was undetermined. Metformin is also known to improve glucose, lipid abnormalities, and hyperandrogenism in obese adolescents with insulin resistance.


Researchers from the Endocrine Clinic at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, conducted a chart review of 26 adolescents who were obese but did not have diabetes, and who were followed at the Endocrine Clinic. Obesity was defined as body mass index over 95th percentile. Fourteen of the 26 had received metformin (1000 mg/day) for 12 months due to abnormal high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol level, triglycerides (TG) level, fasting insulin level or oligo/amenorrhea.

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Weight-loss Challenge Continues Today in USA TODAY and on USATODAY.com


MCLEAN, Va., June 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2006 USA TODAY Weight-Loss Challenge continues today highlighting dieter Jeff Rush, a 50 year-old elementary school physical education teacher from Greenwood, S.C. [more]





Number of Weight Loss Surgeries Increases 600 Percent


A recent study by the American Journal of Public Health indicates that the number of weight-loss surgeries performed in the U.S. between 1998 and 2002 increased by almost 600 percent. Data for the study was collected from hospital discharge records, citing the increased use and efficiency of laparoscopic surgical methods – which were introduced in 2001 – as the catalyst for the increase in patient numbers. [more]






Water weight loss


How did Mariah Carey get back her killer figure? By doing a variety of exercises in the pool and eating mini meals.

"Everyone said I was fat, so I did something about it," Carey told Life & Style. [more]






DNP International Expands Weight Loss and Antioxidant Product Line


WHITTIER, CA (June 19, 2006) – DNP International, a Whittier, Calif. based raw material distributor to the nutritional supplement industry, ads more weight loss and antioxidant herbal products to its line, additions needed as demands for weight loss and general health raw materials increase during the summer months. [more]





Nestle buys weight loss business


Food giant, Nestle, has bought the American weight-loss company Jenny Craig for around $US600 million.

The deal expands Nestle's high-margin nutrition and health business. [more]

Read more »

In a recent study, patients taking Merck's Januvia once daily experienced significant weight loss in addition to lower glucose levels. Merck said Tuesday its pending diabetes therapy January has shown to be a glucose-controlling drug with a twist - weight loss.


Januvia joins the flood of next-generation diabetes therapies that manage to keep blood sugar in check without the weight gain that has long dogged diabetes patients.


Merck said a non-inferiority study of Januvia showed the drug reduced blood glucose as well as glipizide at 52 weeks, but that patients taking Januvia once daily also experienced significant weight loss, while the glipizide-treated group gained weight.


What's more, subjects receiving Januvia also had a lower incidence of hypoglycemia, compared to the control group.


Fewer Episodes of Hypoglycemia

"In the new data presented today, Januvia demonstrated substantial glucose-lowering effects at one year with a magnitude of (blood glucose) reduction that was non-inferior to that of glipizide," said Peter Stein, Merck's senior director of clinical research.

"Additionally, Januvia demonstrated weight loss and fewer episodes of hypoglycemia vs. glipizide. These are important findings for a potential new treatment for type 2 diabetes," he said.

Merck presented the findings at the American Diabetes Association meeting in Washington.


According to a report on CNBC, Arena Pharmaceuticals also has a diabetes drug in the works that has shown to cause some patients in clinical trials to lose as much as 8 pounds in three months. Arena's drug, however, is not as far along in the pipeline as Merck's drug, the report noted.


For more on Diabetes, go to The Diabetes Info Blog


Source: Daily News Central