The World Obesity Congress and Expo held in Washington dc, usa on July 12-13 this year was all about anti-obesity drugs: educating industry about new research on it, and finding ways to enhance business in this area. The Expo's focus was extremely timely: two days later, the us department of health and human services announced that obesity was now officially considered an illness, and would be brought under the umbrella of Medicare coverage.
In 2003, sales for anti-obesity drug Meridia came close to us $200 million. And companies are busily researching on drugs that could affect satiety or modify behaviour by working through the gastro-intestinal system or the brain. There's Acomplia, for instance, likely to be introduced into the market in 2006 by its maker, Sanofi-Aventis SA. It is a cannabinoid cb1 receptor antagonist and treats obesity by blocking brain signals that control cravings (cb1 receptors, found in the brain and in fat cells, play a crucial role in a complex signalling system that urges the body to eat more than it needs). The company estimates the drug's peak annual sales to exceed us $3.6 billion.
"I think the very development and existence of anti-obesity drugs are premised on a number of myths that exist about weight and health and that the drugs do little to aid weight loss and nothing to improve health," says Maree Burns of the University of Exeter.
Could the companies promote, instead, healthier lifestyles? If wishes were horses...