Isn’t there a magic pill I can take?

There is always a lot of medical research being done on obesity everyday. So I wanted to take time to cover   medications that are currently on the horizon.While I do not want you to study like you are in medical school, I just want you to go through the text as it will make you understand why and how scientists are approaching to conquer the problem of obesity. This will make it clear, why we should not be fall for and look for the magic answer. So if you do not understand the list below,  it is perfectly OK, it is complicated even for most doctors. The most common question I receive from my patients is “Doctor what do you think of this pill, which claims weight loss” “What do you think of this herbal substance, which claims weight loss?” If you have the same question, I address this issue in this blog. 1. Central Nervous System Agents- these affect neurotransmitters or neural ion channelsAntidepressants (bupropion)
Selective serotonin 2c receptor agonists
Antiseizure agents (topiramate, zonisamide)
Dopamine antagonists
Cannabinoid-1 receptor antagonists (rimonabant)
2. Agents which play with the hormone or neurotransmitters from the brain Leptin/insulin/central nervous system pathway agents, including
Leptin analogues, leptin transport and/or leptin receptor promoters,
Ciliary neurotrophic factor (Axokine),
Neuropeptide Y and agouti-related peptide antagonists,
Proopiomelanocortin and cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript promoters,
Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone analogues,
Melanocortin-4 receptor agonist
3. Agents that affect insulin metabolism/activity, which include protein-tyrosine phosphatase-1B inhibitorsPeroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma receptor antagonists
Short-acting bromocriptine (ergoset)
Somatostatin agonists (octreotide)
Adiponectin
4. Agents which play with the hormone or neurotransmitters that communicate to the stomach and the brain systems  5. Gastrointestinal-neural pathway agents, including those that increase cholecystokinin activity, increase glucagon-like peptide-1 activityExtendin 4
Liraglutide
Dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitors
Increase protein YY3-36 activity those that decrease ghrelin activityAmylin analogues (pramlintide)
6. Agents which play with the hormone or neurotransmitters from the stomach/Gut system 7. Agents that may increase resting metabolic rate“Selective” beta-3 stimulators/agonist
Un-coupling protein homologues
Thyroid receptor agonists
8. These are the agent which play with improving your metabolism 9. Agents which play in digestion, absorption of the nutrients and related with gut hormones 10. Other more diverse agentsMelanin concentrating hormone antagonists,
Phytostanol analogues
Functional oils
P57
Amylase inhibitors
Growth hormone fragments
Synthetic analogues of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate
Antagonists of adipocyte 11B-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 activity
Corticotropin-releasing hormone agonists
Inhibitors of fatty acid synthesis
Carboxypeptidase inhibitors
Indanones/indanols
Aminosterols
Other gastrointestinal lipase inhibitors (ATL962)
11) Agents which play in digestion, absorption of the nutrients and related with gut hormones Finally, an emerging concept is the development of anti-obesity agents must not only reduce fat mass (adiposity) but must also correct fat dysfunction (adiposopathy). Even with all the medications available now and those in the works, none of them is a promising ‘do-it-all’ solution.  Once you understand obesity, you will know that there is no such medication that works on every aspect of weight loss. Losing weight will never be magic. To lose weight we must limit the calories consumed and maximize the calories burned, and reset the metabolism so that your weight loss efforts will be not be in vain. Trust that there is no magic pill, herb, powder, which will make you skinny overnight. It is disappointing to know that there is no magic for now and near future, as easy as one pill do all the trick does not exist. But now that you know the truth, you will not be disappointed and feel cheated. If you believe this fact, you can say good-bye to yo-yo diets, that only provide an emotional roller coaster. That is the first step!