Diet Drug Approval Sparks Concern

Feb. 15, 2007 — -- Elise Becker knew she had a problem when at 15 years old, she weighed a mere 82 pounds.

Every day, Becker would take nearly 25 diet pills or diuretics.

"I'd wake up and take three diet pills," she said. "Every hour I'd take three more."

"I spent all my money, all my allowance, on the pills. I had an abuse problem."

From her own experience, Becker found getting her hands on the pills "super easy." She got the impression that those around her thought it was fine. She was a young woman concerned about her weight.

When it comes to Alli, she thinks it will be the same.

"Of course it will be abused," she said. "It's like a miracle drug, an easy way out."

Alli, a less-powerful version of GlaxoSmithKline's prescription drug orlistat, got the go-ahead from the Food and Drug Administration earlier this month. It's the first weight loss drug to be approved for sale over the counter.

For men and women who need an extra boost in their weight loss regimen, Alli works to block the absorption of dietary fat in the body. This means all those hard hours in the gym can pay off quicker.

But for the many doctors and therapists who counsel patients living with eating disorders, the FDA approval of Alli has more serious consequences.

They worry that people suffering from anorexia and bulimia will see Alli as another option they can use to achieve their weight loss goals -- no matter what the consequences.

"Everyone succumbs to this quick fix," said David Drajkowski, a psychotherapist in Milwaukee, Minn., who works with diet disorder patients. "I've had a bunch of patients fall into the diet drug craze."

With FDA approval, Drajkowski worries people will believe the drug is healthy, feeding into their desire for easy, painfree weight loss.

"As someone who works with diet disorder patients, this scares me," he said.

It isn't uncommon for those suffering from bulimia to abuse laxatives. Anorexics have also been known to take insulin-blocking drugs to suppress their hunger.

"This is just another product for people to waste money on and get more sick," said Rachel Quast, author of "Journey From the Storm Within: 9 Steps to Eating Disorder Recovery."

While Alli is only recommended for adults who are overweight, with a body mass index of at least 27, there is still concern that teenagers will find the drug appealing.

"It is going to get the young kids addicted. They'll get their hands on it -- they always do," Quast said. "That's real scary."

Drajkowski is also worried.

"I would think this could generate more people with diet disorders," he said, "or cause more disordered thinking."