What pill works best for weight loss?

Most prescription weight-loss drugs work by making you feel less hungry or fuller. Some do both. ... What drugs are approved for weight loss? Bupropion-naltrexone (Contrave) Liraglutide (Saxenda) Orlistat (Xenical, Alli) Phentermine-topiramate (Qsymia) Semaglutide (Wegovy) Setmelanotide (Imcivree)

mayoclinic.org - Prescription weight-loss drugs: Can they help you? - Mayo Clinic

What is the egg diet plan?

The boiled-egg diet is a fad diet that requires eating only eggs, some fruit, nonstarchy vegetables, lean protein, and some fat, and it promises to...

Last updated Sep 23, 2021

What vitamins speed up metabolism?

biotin. folate. B-6. pantothenic acid or B-5. ... 1. B vitamins B-12 is essential for the metabolism of proteins and fats . It needs B-6 and folate...

Last updated Nov 22, 2018

Promotion

Are you an adult who has serious health problems because of your weight? Have you tried diet and exercise but haven't been able to lose enough weight? If you answered yes to these questions, a prescription weight-loss drug may be a choice for you. Prescription drugs are medicines that a health care provider prescribes for you. You can't buy them off the shelf in a drug store like you can buy nonprescription medicines. Just know that you need to use prescription weight-loss drugs in addition to — not instead of — a healthy diet and exercise.

Who can take weight-loss drugs?

Your health care provider may suggest a weight-loss drug for you in some cases. These include if you haven't been able to lose weight through diet and exercise and your: Body mass index (BMI) is greater than 30. This means you're living with a condition that involves having too much body fat, called obesity. BMI is greater than 27. You also have a serious medical problem linked to obesity, such as diabetes or high blood pressure. Before choosing a medicine for you, your health care provider thinks about your history and health challenges. Then your provider talks with you about the pros and cons of prescription weight-loss drugs. These drugs aren't for everyone. For example, you shouldn't take prescription weight-loss drugs if you're trying to get pregnant, are pregnant or are breastfeeding.

How well do weight-loss drugs work?

Prescription weight-loss drugs that you can use for more than 12 weeks, called long-term use, lead to major weight loss compared with an inactive treatment that doesn't use medicine, called a placebo. The combination of weight-loss medicine and lifestyle changes leads to greater weight loss than do lifestyle changes alone. Taking these drugs for a year can mean a loss of total body weight of 3% to 12% more than that lost with lifestyle changes alone. That may not seem like a lot. But losing 5% to 10% of your total weight and keeping it off can have important health benefits. For example, it can lower blood pressure, blood sugar levels and levels of fats in the blood called triglycerides.

What you should know about weight-loss drugs

Mild side effects, such as nausea, constipation and diarrhea, are common. They may lessen over time. Rarely, serious side effects can happen. That's why it's important to ask your health care provider about all treatment choices. And ask about the possible benefits and risks of each drug. Weight-loss drugs can be expensive and aren't always paid for by insurance. Ask your insurance company about your coverage. Many people gain back some of the weight they lost when they stop taking weight-loss drugs. But practicing healthy lifestyle habits may help limit weight gain.

How long do I take a weight-loss drug?

How do you get rid of stored body fat?

How can I reduce visceral fat? exercising for at least 30 minutes every day (for example by brisk walking, cycling, aerobic exercise and strength...

Last updated Mar 10, 2019

What happens if you drink water before bed?

Drinking water before bed can increase the amount of times you need to urinate at night. Your urine output decreases at night, allowing you to...

Last updated Jun 21, 2019

Promotion

How long you take a weight-loss drug depends on whether the drug helps you lose weight. If you've lost enough weight to improve your health and you haven't had serious side effects, your health care provider may suggest that you take the drug long term. If you haven't lost at least 5% of your body weight after taking the full dose of a drug for 3 to 6 months, your health care provider will probably change your treatment. They may switch you to a different weight-loss drug.

What drugs are approved for weight loss?

Six weight-loss drugs have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for long-term use:

Bupropion-naltrexone (Contrave)

Liraglutide (Saxenda)

Orlistat (Xenical, Alli)

Phentermine-topiramate (Qsymia)

Semaglutide (Wegovy)

Setmelanotide (Imcivree)

Most prescription weight-loss drugs work by making you feel less hungry or fuller. Some do both. The exception is orlistat. It affects the way your body absorbs fat.

Bupropion-naltrexone

Bupropion-naltrexone is a combination drug. Naltrexone is used to treat alcohol and opioid addiction. Bupropion is a drug to treat depression, called an antidepressant, and a drug to help people stop smoking, called a quit-smoking aid. Like all antidepressants, bupropion carries a warning about suicide risk. Bupropion-naltrexone can raise blood pressure. So your provider will need to check your blood pressure regularly at the start of treatment. Common side effects include nausea, headache and constipation.

Liraglutide

Liraglutide also is used to manage diabetes. It's given as a daily shot. Nausea is a common complaint. Vomiting may limit its use.

Orlistat

You also can get orlistat in a reduced-strength form without a prescription (Alli). Orlistat can cause side effects such as passing gas and having loose stools. You need to follow a low-fat diet when taking this medicine. In rare cases, people have had serious liver injury with orlistat. But researchers haven't found that the drug causes liver injuries.

Phentermine-topiramate

Phentermine-topiramate is a combination of a weight-loss drug called phentermine and an anticonvulsant called topiramate. Phentermine has the potential to be misused because it acts like a stimulant drug called an amphetamine. Other possible side effects include an increase in heart rate and blood pressure, insomnia, constipation, and nervousness. Topiramate increases the risk of birth defects. Phentermine by itself (Adipex-P, Lomaira) also is used for weight loss. It's one of four similar weight-loss drugs approved for use for less than 12 weeks, called short-term use. The other drugs in this group aren't often prescribed.

Semaglutide

Semaglutide also is used to help control type 2 diabetes. You take it as a weekly shot to manage obesity.

It can cause side effects such as:

What causes an overhang belly?

Also known as a pannus stomach or mother's apron, apron belly occurs when the belly and fat surrounding the internal organs expands due to weight...

Last updated Sep 24, 2022

What minerals help you lose weight?

Chromium and calcium are two minerals that have been extensively researched over the years, most recently for their impact on body weight. This...

Last updated May 27, 2020

Promotion

Nausea and vomiting

Diarrhea

Belly pain

Headache

Tiredness

Setmelanotide

The FDA has approved setmelanotide only for people age 6 and older who have obesity due to one of these rare inherited conditions:

Pro-opiomelanocortin deficiency

Proprotein subtilisin-kexin type 1 deficiency

Leptin receptor deficiency

To take the drug, you'll need to have test results that show you have one of these conditions. Setmelanotide doesn't treat any of the gene problems that cause these conditions. But it can help you lose weight. It can lessen your appetite and make you feel fuller. And it may help you burn calories while your body is at rest. You take setmelanotide as a daily shot. It can cause side effects such as:

Swollen or irritated skin where the needle went in

Patches of darker skin

Nausea

Diarrhea

Belly pain

Unwanted sexual reactions

Depression

Suicidal thoughts

Never give setmelanotide to a child under 6 years old. It can cause newborns and babies to have dangerous reactions.

The bottom line

Weight-loss drugs aren't an easy answer to weight loss. But they may help you make the lifestyle changes that you need to practice to lose weight and improve your health. There is a problem with information submitted for this request. Review/update the information highlighted below and resubmit the form. From Mayo Clinic to your inbox Sign up for free, and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips and current health topics, like COVID-19, plus expertise on managing health. Email ErrorEmail field is required ErrorInclude a valid email address Learn more about Mayo Clinic’s use of data. To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, and understand which information is beneficial, we may combine your email and website usage information with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, this could include protected health information. If we combine this information with your protected health information, we will treat all of that information as protected health information and will only use or disclose that information as set forth in our notice of privacy practices. You may opt-out of email communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the e-mail. Subscribe! Thank you for subscribing! You'll soon start receiving the latest Mayo Clinic health information you requested in your inbox. Sorry something went wrong with your subscription Please, try again in a couple of minutes Retry

mayoclinic.org - Prescription weight-loss drugs: Can they help you? - Mayo Clinic

What does lemon do to your face?

reduced oil (sebum) due to the drying effects of citric acid. antiseptic qualities, which may kill bacteria that lead to acne, such as P. acnes....

Last updated Dec 24, 2020

Are metabolism pills worth it?

Supplements claiming to boost your metabolism may have little or no benefit and may contain substances that have serious side effects. How much you...

Last updated Nov 27, 2022

Promotion

How can I flush water weight in one day?

4 ways to lose water weight immediately Drink more water. It might be a little difficult to believe but drinking more water can actually help you...

Last updated Jun 26, 2020

Promotion

What is a fat burning shot?

Fat burning injections contain a blend of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that support the body during weight loss. Known as lipotropic...

Last updated May 19, 2022