Obesity drugs

You should turn to the help of drugs for the treatment of obesity only if the methods of natural correction of body weight do not help due to endogenous causes (diseases) or in the absence of responsibility, discipline of nutrition, physical activity. The choice of drugs is definitely not worth making, relying on advertising and reviews on the network. For example, the same drug, especially from the category of non-drug products, for people with different amounts of excess weight and eating habits may show clear differences in efficiency. The compatibility of such a remedy with the treatment of other diseases is not always positive. It is also worth considering the types and degree of completeness: to combat obesity and with slight excess body weight (pre-obesity), different weight correction programs will be required.

Losing weight is a process that lasts for several years, especially with a high body mass index (BMI). In addition to directly taking drugs in any process of treating obesity, other recommendations must be followed.

What are the drugs for weight loss

Any means used to help in the fight against obesity or excess weight, regardless of its purpose, can be medicinal and non-drug. The second group, most often food supplements (BAA), is always available in pharmacies and online stores without a prescription. However, the difference between these drugs is significant.

Medicines:

-          Used to treat a symptom;

-          Passed all stages of testing;

-          Are produced in an acceptable dosage;

-          Have a directional effect;

-          Studied compatibility with other drugs.

Non-drugs:

-          Provide only assistance to treatment;

-          Proven safety;

-          The bioavailability of supplements has not been studied;

-          No efficacy trials;

-          Compatibility has not always been proven.

Nevertheless, it is not worth excluding dietary supplements from the obesity correction program, despite the fact that the mechanisms of the treatment of diseases are beyond the control of dietary supplements. However, as a preventative or supportive measure, such formulations may be useful. For example, many of the correctors of metabolism, which will also be discussed in this review, belong to the category of vitamins and amino acids, which are more often dietary supplements. Work on reducing body weight is always accompanied by diets, and in this case, the body will need the necessary vitamins and amino acids to maintain metabolic processes, immunity, and appearance.

All means, whether it be a medicine prescribed by the attending physician or a dietary supplement in the public domain, work to help control the intake and processing of nutrients obtained from food. The main role in the process of getting rid of interfering, painful fullness is always assigned not to pills, but to building a healthy diet and balancing the intake and expenditure of energy from food (physical activity).

In order for the process of getting rid of obesity or unwanted fullness to proceed evenly, with the possibility of control and without unnecessary burden on the body, appetite blockers and the so-called "fat burners" are most often used, although the mechanism of action of these drugs does not correspond to the popular, but incorrect name.

Depending on which stage of obesity is diagnosed, the most effective and safe weight loss program is selected based on all symptoms. With the second and third degree of obesity, combination therapy is required, including several methods and the use of drugs from different groups. It is obligatory to consult a doctor, since pronounced forms of fullness are often accompanied by specific diseases, syndromes.

To determine the presence of excess weight, you can use the BMI formula - weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters.

Body mass index (BMI) = weight : (height × height) / Example: 55 kg : (1.63 m × 1.63 m) = BMI 20.7.

Appetite correctors

Such drugs are needed in cases where eating habits have developed that have led to obesity or unwanted weight gain - with overeating and a sedentary lifestyle: the most common causes of excess weight.

There are two mechanisms of appetite suppression:

-          Stomach-filling also known as calorie blockers, over-the-counter types of drugs based on herbal ingredients or microcellulose;

-          Effects on adrenaline, serotonin and cannabinoid receptors in the hypothalamus - a part of the brain responsible, among other things, for controlling feelings of hunger and satiety.

In addition, there is a certain practice of turning to antidepressants - some psychotropic drugs have a side effect of appetite suppression. This method is quite effective, but only on condition that the patient suffers from depression, bulimia nervosa (uncontrolled overeating) - when there are appropriate indications for taking antidepressants. In the absence of such symptoms, obesity is not treated with antidepressants.

Calorie and Appetite Blockers

The drugs of this group are more often used at the stages of pre-obesity, since with a slight excess of weight, appetite, as a rule, can still be controlled independently, and, among other things, the most comfortable way to do this can be chosen.

-          Vegetable fibers and extracts - enzyme agents of natural origin that prevent the breakdown of carbohydrates, act as a gentle cleansing of the intestinal lumen;

-          Microcrystalline cellulose - tablets and capsules contain particles that increase in size when dissolved in the stomach. This method helps not to overeat, since a certain volume of the stomach is already occupied and a smaller serving size is required to achieve satiety.

Many of these drugs have a combined effect - reducing the number of calories consumed, glucose absorption, bowel cleansing, and a mild effect on peristalsis. But the action of compounds that change metabolism, in some cases, can manifest itself in the form of side effects. These are stool changes (diarrhea or constipation), flatulence, nausea, and decreased absorption of vitamins and minerals from food or supplements.

It doesn't matter if the drug is prescription or available for free purchase. Correction of obesity always requires medical supervision, since the main obstacle to weight loss, with any degree of completeness or excessive obesity, is a metabolic disorder, and in particular lipid and carbohydrate digestibility. Such processes can be a symptom of other, more serious diseases - hypothyroidism, metabolic syndrome, liver disease, etc.

Obstruction of fat absorption - lipase inhibitors

Also known as "fat burners", although they act in a different direction, in addition, such agents partially remove toxins. The effect of reducing fat mass really takes place, but through the mechanism of spending the body's own reserves.

In the gastrointestinal tract are lipases - special enzymes that promote the breakdown of incoming fats. To reduce the volume of digestible fats and the rate of chemical reactions during their processing, lipase inhibitors are used: such blockers inhibit their activity, resulting in a failure in the breakdown of fats, and this complicates the process of their digestibility. As a result, the body is forced to use its own reserves of fat, which creates the illusion of "burning" excess weight. The use of gastrointestinal lipase inhibitors helps to reduce the amount of digestible fat up to 30% of dietary intake.

The drugs are used not only for weight correction, since they provide great support for the prevention of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases, significantly reducing the amount of fat absorbed in the intestines - a source of "bad" cholesterol.

In addition to available, over-the-counter drugs that block the absorption of fats, professional medications can be used - they are prescribed exclusively by the attending physician for diseases such as hyperlipidemia, hypercholesterolemia, lipoprotein metabolism disorders, and vascular atherosclerosis. Such drugs are used specifically to restore healthy lipid metabolism, which entails natural weight loss, as a result of correct metabolism.

Commercially available lipase inhibitors can be used in various stages of corpulence and morbid obesity, but will only result in weight loss if a low-calorie diet is followed. Sold in the form of tablets, capsules, less often - in the form of syrups (chromium picolinate).

Metabolism correctors - vitamins and amino acids

The already mentioned lipid-lowering agents, when used rationally, are also correctors of metabolism - lipids (fats). But getting rid of obesity is a long-term, serious program in which, in addition to the main goal, it is equally important to maintain or improve the state of health and metabolism. If calorie, appetite, fat, glucose blockers help fight excess fats and carbohydrates, then vitamin preparations, enzymes and amino acids are treated as “helpers” in various processes throughout the entire period of weight loss:

-          Improved delivery of nutrients to cells;

-          Preservation of energy, cheerfulness;

-          Improved digestion;

-          Restoration of metabolism;

-          Maintaining skin tone, hair condition;

-          Supply of cells with useful compounds against the background of low-calorie diets, etc.

To achieve these goals, it is recommended to pay attention to essential amino acids - those that the body does not produce. In weight correction, the main essential amino acids are leucine, tyrosine, creatine, arginine, tryptophan, but the record for effectiveness and popularity belongs to the compound L-carnitine.

Levocarnitine is the closest "relative" of B vitamins, an active corrector of metabolic processes, primarily fat metabolism. It slows down the breakdown of protein molecules, which helps maintain tissue and muscle volume, and increases the production of digestive enzymes.

The release form of amino acids and vitamins is tablets, syrups, injection solutions (prescription type of the drug).

The intake of vitamins and minerals during weight loss is in the nature of a recommendation, the choice of such support for the body and metabolism can be discussed with a nutritionist or treating specialist.