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Prescription Diet Drugs to Ask Your Doctor About

Prescription diet medication can work in different ways. Appetite suppressants, the kind that keep you from feeling like you need to eat, are the most common, but you can discuss other types of weight-loss medications with your doctor.

  1. Significance

    • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved several prescription drugs for weight loss. Most of the approved medications work by acting as an appetite suppressant. However the FDA has recently approved two other types of medications for weight loss.

    Meridia

    • Meridia is the trade name of sibutramine and works by helping you to feel full. Different than an appetite suppressant, which makes your brain think you are not hungry, sibutramine gives you the sensation that your stomach is full. Doctors can prescribe Meridia for a period of 24 months. Meridia is being used successfully, but does have drawbacks, the biggest being that it can affect the heart and blood pressure.

    Orlistat

    • Orlistat, also called Xenical as a prescription drug and Alli as the over-the-counter (OTC) version, works by stopping about one third of the fat you eat from being processed in your digestive system. The idea behind this medication is that you can still eat a diet high in fat and lose weight. Because of the way the medicine works, in many people it can cause some bad side effects, including anal leakage and loose bowels.
      Xenical is considered for people with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater, or have a BMI of 27 and other risk factors, according to the drug's manufacturer, Roche Pharmaceutical. BMI is a measure of weight which takes height into account and can be easily calculated on sites like NHLBIsupport.com with their BMI calculator.

    Phentermine

    • Phentermine, also called Ionamin, Obenix, Oby-Cap, Teramine, Zantryl and Adipex-P, is an appetite suppressant that has been around since the 1970s. Doctors prescribe phentermine for brief periods of time, up to two months, but usually no longer because of bigger risks of addiction and heart problems with this type of medication than the others.

    Considerations

    • Some drugs are prescribed for other purposes, but may have the side effect of causing weight loss. These medications are being studied as potential weight-loss drugs. Glucophage, which is used for the treatment of diabetes, often causes people to lose weight. Certain antidepressants, such as Prozac, Wellbutrin and Zoloft, have been shown to help with weight loss. And two prescription medicines used for convulsions, Topamax and Zonegran, are also being studied as possible diet medications.
      Your doctor can help you to determine which type of medication is best suited for your particular weight-loss needs.

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