A new weight loss drug by Arena Pharmaceuticals shows promising results in clinical trials, and could hit store shelves by early next year. Read the full story

Weight loss pills are awaiting final approval from the FDA.  Lorcaserin and Contrave have shown to curb patient’s eating and have led to double-digit weight loss in early clinical trials. Read the full story

Watch this week’s WLS News to find out why too much exercise, too soon could pose certain risks to weight loss surgery patients. And, learn how drinking coffee and tea may help prevent a life threatening medical condition. Plus, we’ll tell you how psychotherapy can benefit overweight teens, fill you in on two new weight loss pills expected to get FDA approval, and share the top ten trends in weight loss surgery for the New Year. Read the full story

Obesity Drug Clears Trial, But Has Limited Effects

A new drug called lorcaserin, still in a trial stage, is proving to be effective at promoting weight loss without any dangerous side effects. But, some analysts say it isn’t effective enough.

The drug, manufactured by Arena Pharmaceuticals, is designed to stimulate a receptor in the brain that regulates food intake, reducing hunger and leading to weight loss.

Studies have shown that lorcaserin can stimulate the brain without producing any of the emotional or bodily damage that other obesity drugs caused before being discontinued.

Also, the testing results of this drug currently satisfy the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s standards for approvability. Findings showed that 47 percent of patients who used lorcaserin for one year lost an average of 5.8 percent of their body weight, whereas patients who took a placebo lost a little more than 2 percent.

But the drug’s effect on weight isn’t enough to satisfy analysts at J.P. Morgan or Barclays Capital, who claim that a person could easily accomplish such a negligible amount of weight loss through a year of regular dieting. Consequently, they are bearish on the product, stating that limited effect of the drug could affect its sales.

Arena Pharmaceuticals, based in San Diego, California, will await the results of another trial, due later this year, before seeking final approval from the Food and Drug Administration. Arena is one of three small drug makers in California currently in the final stages of developing drugs against obesity.

In our WLS News report for April 10, 2009, we’ll share the results of a recent clinical trial for a new obesity drug, explain how rapid weight gain in infants may predict future obesity, and tell you about the dangers of high fructose corn syrup.

Plus, we’ll report on new findings about how people of minority ethnic groups process fat differently, and tell you what Canadian authorities are doing to curb the epidemic of childhood obesity up north. And, of course, our resident Web-diva, Yvonne McCarthy, will share the scoop about a great website with excellent weight loss tips. Click the player below to see this week’s newscast!

Organizations mentioned in this week’s news:

• BC Children’s Hospital (Vancouver, Canada)
• Canadian Medical Association Journal
• Dr. Louise A Baur, Discipline of Pediatrics & Child Health, University of Sydney
• Arena Pharmaceuticals
• U.S. Food & Drug Administration
• Project Viva (study of childhood obesity)
• Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
• Harvard Medical School
• Children’s Hospital Boston
• National Institutes of Health
• Pediatrics (journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics)
• Bariatric Girl (Yvonne McCarthy’s WLS support site)
• Three Fat Chicks on a Diet (weight loss support site)
• Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
• Dr. M. Daniel Lane, Distinguished Service Professor of Biological Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
• UT Southwestern Medical Center
• Hepatology (medical journal)
• The Dallas Heart Study
• Bariatric Advantage (nutritional supplements)