2 New medications Approved For Weight Loss

[susiestar]

The FDA has approved 2 medications for weight loss, according to drugs.com. One is a combo of phentermine and topomax, calls Qsymia. The other is Belviq, which is said to affect the chemicals in the brain that deal with appetite. These are medications to be used over the long term, usually to be considered to be taken for the rest of a patient's life, according to the article.

I have mixed feelings about this, and am not sure if I would be interested at this stage. Like past weight medications, we don't really seem to know the long term effects and that is what bugs me. But if weight were my primary issue, rather than part of a very complex mess of health issues that started long, long before weight was an issue, I would probably be all over this.

Here is a link to the article: http://www.drugs.com/fda-consumer/medications-target-long-term-weight-control-223.html

 

[InsaneCdn]

The other potential application is for people who have to be long-term on medications that increase appetite - if the orig medication really works for controlling a MI-related condition and other alternatives don't work as well... then countering the "appetite-increasing" side effect of one, with an "appetite-decreasing" medication... may be useful.

 

[DammitJanet]

Hmm...I can really see where the one combining phentermine and topamax working quite well. Since I dont know whats in the other one, I cant comment. I will be talking to the doctor though. I think I might just be asking for a bottle of phentermine because there is no way I could take enough of the diet pill to actually get my dose of topamax...lol.

 

[Tiapet]

I can see it working with Topomox combo. I don't know how I feel about it either. Though for Topomax to be effective in losing, it needs to be a pretty high dose (not like the low doses for migraine treatment) as it is known to cause weight loss on it's own at high enough doses. At migraine levels it's just weight neutral (meaning it won't add but it won't cause loss).

Never heard of the other medication either.

Janet, when I was in NC my primary, via the GI tried to, via underhandedness, get me to do the bariatric surgery for weightloss. At the time I didn't know it but later found out. What I can tell you is that your insurance WILL cover it in NC. It is now on the list of coverable surgeries believe it or not. Not saying you want it by any means, just letting you know that it IS covered!

 

[DammitJanet]

Yeah it is covered IF you have doctors who will document everything exactly the way they want it documented. I dont think mine are up to that.

as far as topamax and the dose it needs to be at to cause weight loss....it does not need to be very high. I lost almost a 100 pounds at a very low dose. Well low compared to what Im on now I guess. Maybe my doses are relative. I take 600 mgs of topamax right now.

I started out on topamax at 12.5 mgs and we upped it every two weeks from there and I stopped at 100 mgs for a very long time. I didnt increase my topamax for about 2 years and at that point I increased pretty fast all the way up to 1000 mgs. But in 03, I lost about 90 pounds in 10 months on an average of 50/100 mgs of topamax. Now I dont know what the mgs is for migraine usage but you do not have to be on 200 or 400 mgs to lose weight.

The thing I have found out is that if you ever go off of topamax and then go back on it, the weight loss effect is no longer there. Or it wasnt for me.

 

[Californiablonde]

I tried Topomax for weight loss and it didn't work for me. I begged former psychiatrist to let me try it because I heard all kinds of success stories with it. Unfortunately it wasn't of any help. I don't know if I just didn't give it enough time or what. I was on it for a month. My appetite was still the same and I didn't lose any weight. I think my dose was 100 mgs. I'm not totally sure. Was totally bummed when it didn't work for me. Now I'm going to try Weight Watchers. Wish I could just take a pill and have it work but so far nothing helps.

 

[Tiapet]

75-100mgs for migraine depending on tolerance...by that I mean the "stupiditis" that it gives you. The dulling of cognitive abilities and boy can it do that! I couldn't tolerate it at 100mg. I could not function at all! I don't think I've heard higher dosing for migraine but that's not to say there isn't out there. So it sounds like at 200 or higher might be the tipping point for weight loss?

 

[Californiablonde]

Maybe I will ask my psychiatrist about it at our next visit. But I heard that once you try it then stop it and start it again, the weight loss effects go away?

 

[DammitJanet]

CB....you were only on it for a month...dont think that counts as on it.

And if they put you up to 100 mgs in a month, you had a quack of a psychiatrist. People get the dopamax effects from topamax because they start on it way to high and increase it way too fast. No one month wasnt enough time to see if it would make you lose weight. There is no magic wand that is going to suddenly wave and you are going to see a dozen pounds drop off in a month. Even when I was losing that fast, I was only losing 10 a month. Maybe 10...sometimes a few less.

I always tell people if they go on topamax if they are going to start it to begin with 12.5 mgs for 2 weeks...then go to 25 mgs for 2 weeks...then go to 50 mgs for another 2 weeks. Then go to 75 mgs for 2 weeks. Stop there and see how you are doing. Are you losing weight?

This isnt going to make you feel like you are speeding up or anything like that. What you will notice is food tastes different. You wont crave certain things. I noticed soda tasted nasty. (I pushed through that one!) Candy was so awful I couldnt even tolerate it and would go out of my way to not even smell it. Certain foods I used to love would make me gag. Eventually I simply didnt want to eat as much. Now if I wanted to eat, I certainly could. The pill didnt stop my hand from picking up a fork.

I learned to read labels. I made bets with myself each day on what I would and wouldnt eat each day. When easter and halloween came and went and I didnt hit the bargain bins...I knew I had it beat...well that didnt last...lol.

 

[Californiablonde]

So do you think it's worth asking my psychiatrist to give it a try? Right now I'm pretty desperate. Losing four pounds a month isn't fast enough for me. I need extra help.

 

[DammitJanet]

Losing 4 pounds a month at your weight is actually very good. You are NOT obese. I just read your other post and from what I gather you may weigh somewhere around 150/160. Your goal weight is 125. Needing to lose 25/35 pounds doesnt qualify one as obese. If you lose it faster than that you are just losing water and the minute you eat again, the weight will all come back on.

I used to weigh 125 and would diet back down to that if I got to 130. It was so easy. That was BK. Before kids. I just ate a bit better and did a bit more exercise.

 

[buddy]

Both times I was on topamax I lost weight easily. Had terrible name finding problems though. Nothing that caused any work issues or anything.

Edit.....I was on a low dose at night only by the way....

 

[Californiablonde]

I am sure I must weigh about 160 now. If I lost a pound a week it would take me 35 weeks to get to my goal weight. Too slow for me. I think I will talk to psychiatrist about Topomax again. See if it helps. Couldn't hurt, anyway. I didn't get any bad side effects from it the last time I took it.

 

[SuZir]

You certainly make me feel huge Obese in 150 pounds? I'm about that and fancy myself skinny. 125 pounds I was last time when I was fifteen and just legs and arms and nothing more.

CB: Try to be patient with your weight loss. Trying to get it down too quickly simply makes it more difficult to keep it away. And make exercising a daily routine. It does help to loose weight but more importantly it is a way to keep weight off. It is easy to loose weight by eating little but as you have noticed, it comes back even easier that way. it is very difficult to eat for example 1200 kcal a day and get all the nutrition you need and that makes your body to crave food. If you exercise and eat little more, it is much easier to get all you need from your food.

 

[svengandhi]

I just had bariatric surgery and I am so happy. I didn't like the idea of taking pills and I have so much stress in my life that I couldn't control my appetite. I barely qualified for it but my insurance covered it. I had to deliberately gain 15 pounds to meet the guideline plus get a doctor to say I have sleep apnea. Since my surgery 3 weeks ago, I have lost 17 pounds but I have not yet had the saline put in. At that point, my loss will slow to 1 - 2 pounds per week, which is perfect because I have not told very many people. If anyone notices, I tell them I am in weight watchers. Even though I am still morbidly obese, I am making progress. In honesty, I want to lose 90 more pounds but will settle for 70.

I had the lapband. I am a convert to this way of losing weight and keeping it off.

 

[InsaneCdn]

CB... four pounds a month is an excellent pace for losing weight.
The GOOD plans won't LET you lose faster than that.
A pound a week. If you can lose a pound a week of good solid fat, you will be doing very well.
(water loss doesn't really count)

Try and go faster, and you will throw something else out. Your metabolic rate, or your electrolytes, or something. You cannot exercise enough and eat few enough calories to lose faster... and still be getting all the macro and micro nutrients you need (protein/carbs/fat, and minerals and vitamins)

 

[HaoZi]

I lost about 10lbs on 50mg of Topamax and plateau'd out. No increase has changed my weight, appetite, or the taste of foods or ability to smoke at all since then. I wish it would help me quit smoking.

 

[Californiablonde]

I lost ten pounds in eight weeks so I am used to losing it faster. It was summer time and heat kills my appetite so it was easy. For some reason the cold weather makes me want to eat more. At least I'm not midnight snacking like I used to do on the Remeron. I know I can do it just wish I had a little extra help is all. This is the heaviest I've ever been in my life. I gained quite a bit of weight after having easy child but even then I didn't weigh as much as now. I just tried on difficult child's jeans this morning which are a size 14 and they were tight! So now I'm almost in to plus sizes. Can't let that happen. I won't.