Xenical may help keep weight off, curb diabetes

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In a study of obese adults who successfully lost a substantial amount of weight by dieting, taking Xenical, along with lifestyle modification, helped keep them from regaining the weight.

Moreover, this strategy was also associated with a reduced occurrence of type 2 diabetes.

The diet drug Xenical, known generically as orlistat, produces weight loss by decreasing the amount of fat absorbed in the intestines. Studies have shown that the drug promotes more weight loss than lifestyle modification alone.

The current study examined the ability of Xenical to prevent weight regain in 383 obese adults who had lost an average of 31.7 pounds (14.4 kg) on an 8-week protein-rich, very-low-energy diet. The 309 participants who lost 5 percent or more of their bodyweight then received lifestyle counseling for 3 years while taking either Xenical or a matching placebo pill daily.

In the journal Diabetes Care, Dr. Bjorn Richelsen from Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark, and colleagues report that the two groups both regained some weight, but it was 5.3 pounds (2.4 kg) less among those who took Xenical. That is, Xenical patients regained an average of 4.6 kg, while placebo patients put back an average of 7.0 kg.

Waist circumference was reduced by 2 to 3 centimeters (0.8 to 1.2 inches) more in the Xenical group compared with the placebo group.

"Notably," the researchers add, only 8 of 153 in the Xenical group developed type 2 diabetes compared with 17 of 156 in the placebo group, during the 3-year study period.

Xenical, they conclude, "may be a useful adjunct to conventional dietary and lifestyle treatment of high-risk obese subjects."

SOURCE: Diabetes Care, January 2007.