The latest drug weight-loss which came to market the previous week is Belviq and offers aid for the overweight Americans who wish to lose weight, though 2 top specialists for obesity say that it is not just for every other person and it should not be the first remedy.
Director of Weight Management Centre at the Scripps Clinic located in California, La Jolla told that Belviq along with other drugs to suppress appetite are beneficial though should be considered only after the non-medical approaches, that involve diet or fitness etc., are tried and also proven ineffective.
According to Dr Fujioka, the steps taken to decrease weight are important so if exercise and diet are looked at, around 20% patients would do well though some 80% might not as, unluckily, when one is losing weight the body does lower metabolism and fights the weight getting less.
It is to be noted by Dr Fujioka that the drug Belviq works through affecting neurotransmitter serotonin, which is a chemical inside brain affecting feelings and moods related to “fullness” after meal.
He explains that when a meal is eaten, one feels full and doesn’t feel like he would eat more. This, he says, is the serotonin system turning on and that is something Belviq does, therefore helping one to stay on diet.
The president of Obesity Action Coalition, Joe Nadglowski says that it is important that an expert at health is consulted when medicine for weight loss is considered.
The program for weight loss needs to be tailored according to health and particular conditions of an individual in order to determine if changes in lifestyle would work or whether bariatic surgery or medication of weight-loss is best option.
Dr Fujioka says that if someone is very healthy, for instance twice normal weight along with many medical problems, one could actually think about opting for bariatric surgery, but for other patients, exercise, diet and other appropriate medication for weight loss could be tried.
It is important to plan a strategy, not regarding the fact whether overall weight has to be brought down or some particular areas have to be targeted, like belly fat, that increases risk of a lot of health problems, according to him.
He says that the fat over belly is tough one and not something you could grab as it is around the middle of body, inside around the intestines as well as other organs which is very damaging and losing it requires combination of many things, one being exercise and the others include diet and medication, specifically standard suppressants of appetite.
The statistics of Federal health show nation’s rate of obesity has increased two times over past thirty years with around 1/3 of Americans being obese and also 1/3 of the adults overweight. It was voted by American Medical Association this week to recognize obesity as disease and many measures to combat it were also recommended.
This drug Belviq is made for helping individuals who are unable to manage or lose their weight through fitness and diet only. According to research, the people who used Belviq for one year reduced average of around 4% more of total weight of body than the patients on inactive placebo. However, it is noticed by experts, that, like the other pills for diet, this poses rick of the likely side effects too, such as fatigue, hallucinations, dizziness, memory loss and constipation.
It could be problematic for the individuals who are already taking class of the antidepressants known as the inhibitors serotonin reuptake which also affect chemical.
Dr Fujioka said that with a drug like Belviq that works on serotonin system, one wouldn’t give to the person who already is on another drug acting on the same system, for example, for depression. He also said that people who aren’t on any other drug will do well with Belviq.
