WEIGHT LOSS: New FDA-approved drug tricks body into feeling full
May 10, 2019 • 1 min read
Weight-loss drugs have potentially serious and sometimes embarrassing side-effects. Perhaps that’s why only a fraction of people who are overweight or obese use prescribed weight-loss medication.
But that may soon change thanks to a new weight management prescription drug that tricks the body into feeling full.
Biotechnology company Gelesis’ weight management prescription drug, Plenity, has been cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat obese adults.
The gel that swells
Unlike appetite suppressants, which have knock-on central nervous system side-effects, Plenity’s novel approach comes in the form of a hydrogel capsule that releases thousands of particles, which swell with water inside the stomach to create the feeling of fullness.
Early testing shows promise, with a group of 200-plus users shedding 6.4% of their weight compared to 4.4% weight loss achieved by the placebo group, according to results recently published in the Journal of Obesity.