Skip Alli And Xenical Weight-Loss Drugs

Most of us would do about anything to drop a few pounds—except endure rectal bleeding and kidney, liver, and thyroid problems, that is.

  

But those are the conditions the FDA announced yesterday it is investigating as possible side effects of orlistat, the active ingredient in weight-loss drugs Alli and Xenical.

While the FDA has advised users to continue use of these drugs as directed, Consumer Reports says users should stop taking them immediately. The urge comes after CR reviewed several thousand adverse event reports submitted to the FDA that were associated with the two medications.

Those reports, says CR, “show a pattern of adverse events submitted to the agency since Jan. 1, 2007, including rectal bleeding and kidney, liver and thyroid problems. Those reports don’t prove that orlistat is to blame; but only that those conditions are associated with the use of Alli and Xenical. To date, a clear link between the use of the drug and a majority of those side effects has not been firmly established."

In clinical trials of Xenical, during the first year of use, 27 percent of users had gas with involuntary discharge of stool, 22 percent experienced fecal urgency, 11 percent had an increased number of bowel movements, and 8 percent suffered fecal incontinence. Virtually everyone who takes Xenical experiences diarrhea, at least, occasionally, CR says.

Alli can also cause diarrhea, cramping, and nasty "gas with oily spotting."