Battling the bulge, one pill at a time

A fat-busting pill that has received the EU's green light is set to hit local shelves within weeks.

The first over-the-counter weight-loss product to receive the approval of the European Medicines Agency and the US's Food and Drug Administration, Alli, is not geared for those who want a miracle cure for their extra bulges.

Unlike other products that promise hope in a jar, the pill, produced by pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, makes it clear that fat people have to work hard for the drug to have any effect. In fact, the manufacturer itself is strongly recommending a reduced calorie and lower fat diet, saying clinical trials have shown that people using Alli can lose 50 per cent more weight than by dieting alone.

And according to patients who have tried it in the US, where Alli has been available since 2007, the pill will make you regret gobbling down that extra doughnut.

The drug - a reduced-strength version of a prescription drug designed for obese people and which has been in use for the past decade - stops the body from absorbing a quarter of the fat ingested. But if this amount is too much, it could lead to some pesky digestive side-effects, termed by GSK as "treatment effects", which have led to some graphic descriptions on the internet.

In fact, GSK itself encourages people to start taking the pills when they can stay close to home, wear dark trousers and take a change of clothes to work with them until they get accustomed to the effects.

"While no one likes experiencing treatment effects, they might help you think twice about eating questionable fat content. If you think of it like that, Alli can act like a security guard for your late-night cravings," GSK says.

Monica Abdilla, GSK's consumer healthcare country manager for Malta, said Alli had helped millions of people lose weight gradually and steadily while adopting a healthy lifestyle in the US.

"The opportunity to have similar success in Europe comes as good news and we will be launching Alli in pharmacies throughout Malta soon," she said.