New Miracle Diet Pill Emerges as Meridia is Banned

San Diego BioTec company, Arena Pharmaceuticals, have come up with a new, miracle diet drug named Lorcaserin. Lorcaserin has not passed FDA approval as I write this, but they are sure putting pressure on the FDA. Diet pills are a billion dollar business to the pharmaceutical companies with the rise of obesity in the United States. These little blue pills are hailed as the New miracle anti-obesity drug that we have all been waiting for.

Ok, wait a minute here.....haven't we heard this before? Perhaps we should review a little history on weight loss miracle pills.

Pondimin: An older version of fenfluramine sold in the US market since around 1973. Not successful because of the side effects: drowsiness; neuropsychiatric side effects; mood changes; and memory loss

Isomeride: A non-addicting drug containing a derivative of fenfluramine available in Europe around 1994.

The patent on Pondimin was about to expire so they needed a new drug to stimulate drug sales so what drug emerged, Fen-phen.

Fen-Phen

In 1983 fenfluramine was combined with another diet drug, phentermine in a chemical cocktail. The combination of the two drugs were not approved by the FDA. The two drugs were approved as separate, individual drugs given for short term use only. The two drugs were only supposed to be prescribed to clinically obese patients. The combination of the two drugs was supposed to reduce side effects and was only based on the results of 121 people. In weight loss clinics, these two drugs were prescribed together without FDA approval. Again, It ended up being prescribed for mild to moderate obesity, without proper patient histories or monitoring. Fen-phen made the drug company 18 million by 1996.

Redux manufactured by the French pharmaceutical company, Servier, was a form of Fen-phen. Redux did have FDA approval, being passed only by one vote. It was already in use in Europe.

There was a lot of debate regarding its approval in the US. In Europe, the drug was responsible for pulmonary hypertension in patients. This is a fatal side effect. Despite all this information on the fatal side effects from Europe, the FDA approved it in 1996. In three months, physicians were writing 85,000 prescriptions a week. It was supposed to be given only to clinically obese patients because of its fatal side effects. But ignoring this, the doctors then once again prescribed it for mild to moderate obesity. Again, patient history and monitoring was not done properly. Redux was not even an effective weight loss drug but it sure brought in the money.

Dangerous Side Effects Emerge

By 1997, more and more patients were turning up with pulmonary hypertension, heart-valve blockages and abnormalities. Mounting evidence began to be reported both here and in Europe.

All Three Miracle Diet Pills were Recalled.

In 1997, Pondimin, Redux, and Fen-phen were all recalled off the market. American Home Products (Wyeth) made 200 million off these dangerous drugs by the time they were recalled. Wyeth paid 13 billion dollars in claims to patients who had suffered heart and cardiovascular damage. Isn't that a little late?

New Drug Appears After Others Are Banned.

Meridia was approved in 1997, after the above drugs were pulled off the market. It was approved by the FDA despite side effect reports of increased heart-rate and blood pressure. A group called the Public Citizen's Health Research Group tried to get the FDA to recall the drug several times. They had investigated the FDA's own records to find the drug responsible for 49 cardiovascular deaths and 124 cardiovascular heart problems.

The only response by the FDA was to require a stronger warning label on the box.

Meridia is in the class of drugs known as monoamines such as Prozac. Its side effects include increasing blood pressure, heart rate and abnormal heart rhythms. Other side effects include dry mouth, headaches, constipation, and insomnia. Do not use Meridia if you take other MAOIS inhibitors because it can cause a fatal reaction. Do not take Meridia with other weight loss products that contain phentermine. Do not combine Meridia with prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines or herbs. By these statements, you should realize how easy it is to incur a fatal reaction using this drug. Meridia is indicated only for the clinically obese because of these fatal side effects.

Meridia Banned in Europe in January, 2010, the Cause of 84 Deaths.

In January, Europe suspended sales of Meridia (Sibutramine or Reductil in Europe) because of strokes, heart attacks, and other cardiovascular problems. As of June, 2009, there are now 84 reported deaths from cardiovascular issues. It is a known fact that side effects are always greatly under-reported. These reported deaths come from the FDA's own Adverse Event Reactions Database. Meridia was prescribed to 86,000 Europeans and now 1% or 860 people have damaged hearts because of the drug. Those are just numbers, but what if you are one of the people with a damaged heart for life? What if you are one of the individuals whose life is cut short by the drugs? How will your family feel when they lose you early to a heart attack or stroke?

Toxic and Dangerous Patterns Reemerge with Each New Miracle Diet Pill.

There are several new diet pills including Lorcaserin on the horizon waiting for FDA approval. Diet pills are like beta versions of computer programs. It is best to wait until the bugs have been corrected in the program. Give these new drugs several years for long term side effects and complications to show up. Don't let your heart and life be used as a guinea pig. Obesity is a real health problem but taking drugs that end up giving you heart problems is not a good solution. Behind every diet drug, there is a history of dangerous, hidden, life threatening side effects and death.

Be smart, don't rush to try these new, diet drug miracle solutions. Is it fair that pharmaceutical companies make billions of dollars of profit on your damaged health with untested new drugs? There are safer solutions to control your weight without fatal side effects.

References:

http://medicalconsumers.org/2010/01/24/meridia-banned-in-europe-but-not-in-u-s/

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/prescription/hazard/fenphen.html

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/psychology/health_psychology/Meridia.htmhttp://www.civilrights.com/FenPhen.php