New Study Questions Weight-Loss Drugs

FRIDAY, Jan. 5 (HealthDay News) — Millions of Americans take popular drugs to lose weight, but the long-term risks and benefits of these medications aren’t known, two Canadian researchers contend.

Drs. Raj Padwal and Sumit Majumdar, of the University of Alberta, said long-term studies are needed to determine whether losing weight on drugs such as sibutramine (Meridia), orlistat (Xenical) and rimonabant (Acomplia) actually reduces the risks of heart attack, stroke and diabetes associated with being overweight or obese.

The physicians expressed their views in the Jan. 6 issue of The Lancet.

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