Medications

New over-the-counter and prescription weight loss medications are available. Some people have found them effective in helping to curb their appetite. The results of most studies show that patients on drug therapy lose around 10 percent of their excess weight and that the weight loss plateaus after six to eight months. As patients stop taking the medication, weight gain usually occurs.

Weight loss drugs can have serious side effects. Still, medications are an important step in the treatment process for morbid obesity. Before insurance companies will reimburse or pay for weight loss surgery, you must follow a well-documented treatment path.

"Since many people cannot lose much weight no matter how hard they try, and promptly regain whatever they do lose, the vast amount of money spent on diet clubs, special foods and over-the-counter remedies, estimated to be on the order of $30 billion to $50 billion yearly, is wasted." (New England Journal of Medicine)