That's Fit

New research was recently released on a weight-loss drug called taranabant. Developed by Merck, taranabant suppresses appetite by blocking the CB1 receptor. Interestingly, the drug was developed by using existing research on marijuana, which just happens to be a CB1 stimulator. That's why pot smokers get hungry post-dose.

In the taranabant study, 553 obese patients received either a placebo or a .5, 2, 4 or 6 milligram daily dose of the drug for 12 weeks. A total of 358 patients completed the study. Those on the highest dose lost about 11 pounds compared to a 2.6 pound loss for the placebo group. But as the dose of taranabant increased, so did reports of gastrointestinal and psychiatric problems (e.g., anxiety, diarrhea, nausea, frequent bowel movements or vomiting).

Taranabant is part of the same class of drugs as rimonabant (Acomplia). Keep in mind rimonabant is marketed in Europe, but has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration due to suicidal thoughts reported by some users. No suicidal thoughts were reported for taranabant in this study, but an upcoming larger trial will pose the question. One expert noted drugs like taranabant will likely be prescribed for overweight or obese people with complications such as type 2 diabetes -- not those seeking a quick, ten pound loss.