Orlistat is the brand name of a medicine prescribed to help with weight loss in severely overweight or clinically obese people. In the UK, it is the ONLY medication currently available on prescription for this purpose with two earlier similar medicines no longer prescribed due to safety concerns. These were called sibutramine and rimonabant.

The drug helps to stimulate weight loss by blocking the absorption of fat by enzymes in the digestive tract. The undigested fat is not absorbed into the body but passed out instead in waste matter. The medicine can deal with almost a third of the fat a person consumes in this way.

To determine whether a person is obese or not, the common methodology is the BMI (or Body Mass Index) which is a calculation based on weight and height in adults with some adjustment for age. A 2 digit number is generated with a range of healthy and unhealthy BMI numbers – obesity is generally defines as a BMI of 30 plus which is believed to have medium associated health risks. It is the health risks, such as stroke or heart problems and diabetes, which will motivate a doctor to prescribe Orlistat to help with weight loss, usually where a patient is not succeeding by themselves. It is not however a miracle cure and is only really effective when used as a boost to good eating and lifestyle habits.

Better diet and increased physical activity are the primary routes to weight loss and it is important that patients do not relax in these areas and rely on the drug to do all the work. People can claim that the drug does not work but often it is the other factors which have fallen by the wayside.

The UK guidelines for the use of Orlistat are for patients aged 18 to 75 with a BMI of 30 or higher or 28 if there are additional health factors. You must lose 5% of your weight within 3 months if you are to be allowed to continue to take Orlistat. If you succeed with the weight loss, there is no limit how long you can take Orlistat for., subject of course to regular medical reviews. It is not uncommon to take Orlistat for one or two years if the weight loss goal is significant.

ORLISTAT Online

The usual dosage is 120 mg before meals, three times a day. If the meal contains no fat the dose can be missed. The same applies if you will be missing a meal.

Studies have shown Orlistat to be an effective drug when used in combination with a healthy diet and proper levels of physical activity. Generally, there will be more weight loss seen than with the latter two alone. Some subjects have lost as much as 10% of their body weight within 6 months under this regime.

Side effects are few. The main one is the resulting increase in odour from faeces and increased wind related to the amount of fat passing in your stools. There can also be an increased urgency to pass stools and some marking of clothing. These side effects can settle in time.”

John Rogers

I am General practitioner (GP) in Melbourne since 2006.