Qnexa weight loss drug lowers blood pressure

An experimental weight loss drug that pairs a stimulant with an epilepsy drug helped patients lose weight and keep it off for a year and also lowered blood pressure, a researcher said on Tuesday.

A consultant to Mountain View, California-based Vivus Inc said three separate studies showed patients lost more weight when they took the highest doses of Qnexa, which is up for Food and Drug Administration approval in July.

Shares in Vivus soared 13.6 percent to $11.73 a share in early afternoon trading.

Drops in blood pressure were small but clear and equated with the weight loss, said Dr. Suzanne Oparil of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

"The weight loss is very impressive, and it is good that there is concomitant reduction in blood pressure," Oparil said in a telephone interview from a meeting of the American Society of Hypertension in New York.

Oparil, a past president of the American Heart Association, pooled and analyzed the results of three separate studies of Qnexa in nearly 8,000 overweight and obese patients.

"At week 58 there is a nice weight reduction," she said. The higher the dose, the more weight loss and the more blood pressure went down, she said.

The patients who got the highest dose along with diet and exercise advice lost about 10 percent of their body weight on average, she said.

Vivus is trying to improve on the notorious "fen-phen" combination pulled off the market in 1997 after it was found to damage the heart and cause sometimes fatal cases of pulmonary hypertension.

Improving Health

Fen-phen combined fenfluramine and phentermine. Phentermine, a stimulant now available generically, appears safe and is used at low doses in Qnexa along with the epilepsy drug topiramate, available generically and sold by Johnson & Johnson's Ortho-McNeil unit as Topamax.

Losing just 10 percent of body weight is enough to lower cholesterol and blood pressure, reduce the risk of diabetes and early death. About 68 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese.

In the three studies that Oparil analyzed, about 80 percent of the patients were women, most morbidly obese with weights of 220 to 260 pounds (100 to 118 kg).

Most did not have high blood pressure but among those who did and who took the highest Qnexa dose, the systolic or top number in the blood pressure reading went down an average of 9 points, compared to 4 points for the women who got placebos.

Oparil said the most common side effects were tingling and dry mouth, each seen in 19 percent of the patients who took the highest dosages.

Topiramate acts on the nervous system and tends to act as a sedative, said Oparil. This can reduce appetite. In addition, patients said the drug made carbonated drinks taste metallic and that may have helped patients avoid sugary soft drinks.

Doses of both drugs are far lower than those usually used -- when phentermine is used alone to treat obesity, for example, or when topiramate is used for epilepsy, she said.

The FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee is tentatively scheduled to review Vivus' Qnexa on July 15, the company said.

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Cinnamon: Help for Insulin Resistance and Weight Loss

Recent studies have shown that cinnamon is more than an everyday spice. Aside from being the best condiment to sprinkle to your morning coffee and holiday cookies, cinnamon’s health value is as precious as gold. It has been discovered that cinnamon is a help for insulin resistance and weight loss, among its many other health benefits.

A reputable diabetes journal recently published that cinnamon has the innate ability to reduce the body’s blood sugar level, while increasing insulin production. When taken by a diabetics on a regular basis, it can definitely help manage the disease.

How Cinnamon Helps Fight Diabetes

Cinnamon has insulin-like properties, said the researchers at University of South Carolina Beaufort. The spice is so powerful that it can actually be used as a cheaper substitute for insulin. It is most effective for people suffering from type II diabetes. Cinnamon contains bio-active components that can even prevent the onset of this disease.

In the study printed in the Diabetes Care journal, 60 diabetic men and women taking diabetes medications were put in a clinical test. Some are asked to continue with their medications, while others are placed on a placebo. And there are those who were given cassia cinnamon in different dosages for forty days.

Those who were taking cinnamon exhibit dropped blood glucose level of up to 29%. What’s more, the effect is even better for the group who are taking just a single gram of cinnamon compared to those who are getting three to six grams of it per dose. Why this is the case, the researchers are still evaluating. Aside from maintaining good blood sugar levels, cinnamon also lowers triglycerides and the level of bad cholesterol in the body.

Cinnamon and Weight Loss

Cinnamon is believed to be a weight loss inducer primarily because it has a cleansing effect on the digestive tract. This spice can help remove bacteria, fungus, and parasites from the stomach and the intestines. Therefore, food is processed better and faster. When this happens, the nutrients are effectively distributed all over the body and the waste products are flushed out accordingly.

Cinnamon can also boost one’s energy, which dieters can take advantage of. With enough energy, you can burn fats better through aerobic exercising and weight training. The energy boost is actually a product of glucose being processed by the body instead of storing it in the blood stream.

What’s more, it was found that cinnamon has the ability to block fats. With enough cinnamon in the body, fats cells won’t develop easily. Cinnamon contains lots of nutrients too, more particularly manganese. This spice is also an anti-oxidant in its own right.

To help insulin resistance and weight loss, cinnamon is best used as a tea or as an herbal infusion. It can be added to other natural health aides like honey to boost its effect. Cinnamon can also be taken in its natural form, although the capsule form is the better choice.

by: James Pendergraft
Source : www.articlecity.com

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Old Drugs Combine to Produce New Weight Loss Benefit

The maker of an investigational diet drug -- actually a combination of a drug used to treat alcohol dependence and an antidepressant -- said the combo produced significant weight loss in three clinical trials.

In the concurrent trials with 4,500 obese patients, those given bupropion/naltrexone (Contrave) daily for 56 weeks lost at least 5% of body weight, the FDA benchmark for efficacy of diet drugs, according to a statement from drug maker Orexigen Therapeutics of San Diego.

Bupropion is an antidepressant marketed under the name Welbutrin that is also used as a smoking cessation aid under the name Zyban. Naltrexone is an opioid receptor antagonist used to treat drug and alcohol dependence.

The company said it planned to file a New Drug Application with the FDA during the first half of 2010.

The findings were unveiled during a teleconference with reporters at 8 a.m. EDT, well before the opening of the markets in New York -- the company's stock trades on Nasdaq.

The COR trials (Contrave Obesity Research) randomized patients to bupropion/naltrexone or placebo.

The COR I trial enrolled 1,742 obese patients to two active doses (bupropion 360 mg plus naltrexone at 16 mg or 32 mg) or placebo. After 56 weeks, patients randomized to the 32 mg naltrexone combination lost a mean of 8.1% of baseline body weight or about 18 pounds versus a loss of 1.8% of baseline body weight or four pounds in the placebo group (P<0.001).>

The results were similar in the COR II trial, which recruited 1,496 patients. A third trial examined the combination in patients with diabetes and found that those on active therapy lost a mean of 5.9% of baseline body weight or 13.5 pounds versus 2.2% and five pounds in the control group.

The company said that combined data from the three trials revealed that after 56 weeks of treatment mean blood pressure was unchanged among patients taking the combination, whereas controls had a slight decrease in blood pressure.

There was also a slight increase in pulse rate among patients randomized to bupropion/naltrexone.

Source : www.medpagetoday.com

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Types of Weight Loss Pills

Weight loss pills or anti-obesity pills are medications that help to lose weight. These drugs decrease the appetite and increase the physical activity. These drugs should be used only for life saving that is in cases of morbid obesity. Anti obesity drugs suppress the appetite, increase the metabolism of the body and help to absorb nutrients in food.

There are mainly two types of weight loss pills such as Prescription pills and Non-prescription pills. Prescription pills such as Phentermine, Xenical and Meridia help in reducing weight. Non-prescription pills like Metabolife and Herbalife supplement for the loss in weight. There are certain creams and gel, which penetrate into the skin and dissolve body fat. Diuretics promote urination. It eliminates excess water beneath the skin .It also supplies electrolytes to maintain muscle fullness.

There are a variety of weight loss supplements like fat burners metabolism boosters, apatite suppressants and thyroid supplements. The following are some of the weight loss pills.

Anorectics: These pills reduce the desire to eat. They are used to treat obesity.

Amphetamine: This drug is an appetite suppressant. It belongs to phenethylamines compounds.

Ephedrine is a popular weight control product. It was banned in the U.S in 2003 but the ban was later revoked. It is also banned in competitive sports since it is said to enhance performance. It should be taken only after advice from the doctors.

Cocaine, taken from the coca plant leaves, stimulates the central nervous system. It is also an appetite suppressant. But there are certain side effects like hypertension, physical disorder or heart valve diseases.

Proactol reduces excess body weight. It is the first clinically proven fat binder. it is a medical device because it changes the mechanical process of digesting food in the body. This is 100 percent organic plant extract and fully natural. Proactol is free of allergens, artificial coloring salt flavors, gluten and preservatives. It has no side effects..

Pyruvate preserves muscle tissue as well as promotes fat loss.

Thyroid boosters burn the fat in our body fast. FDA recommends natural loss of weight through exercise.

Neopuntia is a 100 percent natural, 100 percent organic fat binder made from dehydrated leaves of nutritious cactus.

The obesity menace threatens diseases like stroke, cancer, diabetes and heart diseases. In such cases, diet pills can be of great use. Extensive research has shown that a reduction in dietary fat intake contributes to weight loss.

By : Lesley Lyon
Source : www.articlecircle.com

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