Is Alli Your Ally?

As a pharmaceutical research nurse one of my favorite clinical nresearch trials was the Orlistat Study. Orlistat is the genericnfor Alli. This was a well designed clinical trial. The patientsnwere closely monitored and I had the ability to do diet and nnutritional counseling with my patients.

Being part of this research study awakened my real passion in life.I discovered I really enjoyed helping people lose weight and achieve their ideal body image. It was very rewarding to watch people transform their body and be excited about their success. However, as the research study progressed I notice some interesting things. The patients who were successful on the study were the ones who made the necessary lifestyle changes to achieve weight loss. They significantly modified their diet to a well balanced nutritional program and they started an active exercise regimen. The patients who did not do the necessary dietary and exercise changes recommended by the study, did not have much if any success.

The patients who were on the research drug and not following the ndietary guidelines were also experiencing some embarrassing andnunpleasant side effects. One patient went to the movies and ate nbuttered popcorn; she was unable to make it to the bathroom in time to prevent an embarrassing accident. Another patient went out for a nice dinner with her husband and later that night while making love had an embarrassing accident. There were many stories of this nature. These side effects were definatelly a deterrent for consuming high fat meals. The patients did not want to risk the embarrassment of those side effects.

I was surprised that this drug ever made it to market. It seemed so obvious to me that the weight loss had little to do with the drug and everything to do with the patient's commitment to their health and wellness program. However reflecting back, there was no way the pharmaceutical company could really measure the patient's commitment or quality of counseling the patients received from the study nurse.

Ask yourself, if I am going to have to eat a balanced diet and nexercise anyway for the medication to be effective, isn't it better to skip the medication and side effects and change my lifestyle with support and guidance? How good is it for me to take a medication that blocks fat absorption? Do you realize some fat is necessary to absorb certain essential vitamins? I don't believe there will ever be a quick fix when it comes to weight loss. As much as we would all like to eat anything we want and never have to move, that is a fantasy. Your weight did not come onto your body by itself and it not going to leave the body with a pill.