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Thinking of taking a weight loss drug? Now that the popular dietary supplement ephedra has been linked to sudden cardiac death and is due to be removed from the market by the Food and Drug Administration, more people may turn to one of the two widely promoted prescription drugs for weight loss: Meridia and Xenical. Both are oral drugs that can produce modest weight loss in adults when used with a restricted calorie diet. Here are some of the pros and cons of each drug.
MERIDIA (generic name: sibutramine)
Introduced in 1998
Supporting Research: Altogether 11 clinical trials have been conducted in which obese and overweight people went on a reduced calorie diet and were randomly assigned to take Mendia or a placebo. The trials lasted for 12 to 52 weeks. After one year, participants taking 10 mg a day of Mendia lost ten pounds, and those taking...