Do Diet Pills Work?
Three drugs — orlistat (Alli, Xenical), rimonabant (Acomplia, Zimulti), and sibutramine (Meridia) — were studied by Canadian researchers to see if they were effective long-term for obese patients.
According to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, diet pills work if obese people lose 5% of their total body weight after 3 months.
Using that as a guideline, do diet pills work?
The researchers found that patients taking anti-obesity drugs lose less than 11 pounds over 3 months, which does not meet the 5% weight loss guideline.
They reviewed the results of 30 placebo-controlled studies where adult patients took diet pills for at least a year.
Combining all the studies, the average weight of the participants was 220 pounds. The average body mass index (BMI) was 35 to 36.
The scientists discovered that orlistat decreased weight by about 6 pounds, rimonabant by about 10 pounds, and sibutramine by about 9 pounds.
Compared to the patients who took placebos, the patients on diet pills were much more likely to lose 5% to 10% of their body weight.
There were both health benefits and side effects from taking the drugs.
All 3 drugs reduced certain types of cholesterol. In addition, orlistat lowered the incidence of diabetes in at least 1 study.
There were side effects to all 3 drugs as well. But rimonabant stood out as most likely to raise the risk of depression or anxiety.
None of the research looked at the rates of disease and death caused by taking diet pills.
But all the studies showed high drop-out rates of 30% to 40%.
The researchers believe this could be a factor in the poor long-term performance of diet pills. But they also feel that healthy living is the only long-term solution to obesity.
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