Thread by @Mangan150

Anti-obesity drugs are of obvious interest to drug companies - virtually unlimited market, and people would likely have to take these drugs for life.

Many such drugs not only show weak results, but have serious side effects. Several have been withdrawn. link.springer.com/article/10.100…

A combination of 2 drugs and an amino acid appears to be safe. Participants lost ~5 lbs. (2.4 kg) in 16 weeks without any dietary/exercise change.

The result is remarkable yet also weak.
journals.lww.com/americantherap…

Unless some drug shows up that has better results, any drug will have to be combined with diet and/or exercise to have any significant effect on obesity.

But then we've come full circle: diet is the most effective anti-obesity intervention.

2 problems:

1. Health authorities seem unable to say that the modern food supply causes obesity. They talk impotently about "calories" instead.

2. Drugs are just a way to let people get minor weight loss while not changing their diet.

One can sympathize: most people are not going to change their diet significantly.

Yet the answer is obvious: eating low-carb real whole foods.

Until health authorities say this, and people change accordingly, obesity as a public health problem remains intractable.

As an individual, you can change.

But if we expect obesity as a wider phenomenon to go away, I'm afraid we'll be waiting a long time.