Weight Control Drugs - 9781604135534

Two-thirds of American adults are considered overweight or obese, according to the National Institutes of Health. Obesity puts people at increased risk for life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and some types of cancer. Drugs and supplements promising to control weight have been sold for decades, with varying degrees of safety and effectiveness. Today's FDA-approved prescription weight control drugs act by limiting the body's calorie absorption or by altering the levels of certain neurotransmitters in the brain to suppress appetite. Weight Control Drugs explains today's weight crisis and describes the drugs used to control weight, the way they work, the dangers of unregulated weight control supplements, and new drugs under investigation.

Chapters include:

• Weight Control Drugs and Human Health
• Weight Control Drugs, Then and Now
• The Weight Crisis
• The Science of Weight Control Drugs
• Weight Control Drug Scares
• Weight Control Drugs and the Future.