Alli is the name brand for a weight loss drug that you can find on drugstore shelves. It is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Though you don't need a prescription to purchase Alli, you do need to check with your doctor before you use it, especially if you have a health condition. You also need to be aware that it can produce side effects.
Identification
Alli is the brand name for the drug orlistat. The over-the-counter variety contains 60 mg, and the prescription variety has twice that amount. It's meant to be taken by people who are overweight and 18 or older, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Function
Alli works by blocking some of the fat that you ingest; it helps you lose weight by preventing your body from absorbing it, according to drugs.com. It does this by disabling lipase, an enzyme in your digestive tract that helps break down fat. The fat stays undigested and is excreted via your bowel movements, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Features
If you decide to take Alli, you'll pop the pill along with as many as three fat-containing meals each day, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. You actually have a one-hour window in which you can take the pill after eating. You still need to watch your fat intake, however. Eating more than 15 g fat in a meal can cause unpleasant side effects, including gas with oily spotting, urgent bowel movements and diarrhea, according to Dr. Donald Hensrud, preventative medicine and nutrition specialist for the Mayo Clinic.
Expert Insight
Alli is best used along with a low-fat, low-calorie diet as well as a regular exercise program, according to the experts at the Diets In Review website. You can order food through eDiets, with which Alli has formed a partnership, to stay on track. The Alli website also offers support in the form of calorie counters, shopping lists, meal plans and food journals. You are likely to lose 3 to 5 lbs. more than such a program alone if you add Alli, according to the website. Many of the weight-loss studies on orlistat have used the prescription strength version of the drug, notes Hensrud. These reveal an additional weight loss of 5 to 7 lbs. in a year over diet and exercise alone, he notes. Hensrud predicts the over-the-counter version can deliver 3 to 5 additional lbs. of weight loss.
Considerations
The FDA opened a safety review for orlistat in 2009 after it received reports of serious liver injury among people using the drug. As of 2010, no cause-and-effect relationship between orlistat and severe liver injury had been established, according to the FDA. In the United States, there has been one reported case of liver damage by an Alli user, and 12 foreign cases have been reported for its prescription counterpart, Xenical, among the 40 million people worldwide who take this drug. Due to the seriousness of liver injury, the FDA required Alli to include label information about reported cases of liver injury; the label advises people to seek a doctor's care immediately if they notice any signs and symptoms of liver injury. Signs of liver injury include yellow eyes or skin, dark or brown urine, itching, appetite loss, fatigue or weakness and light-colored stools.
Warning
Avoid Alli if you take cyclosporine, already have problems absorbing food, have had an organ transplant or are already at a healthy weight, according to the Mayo Clinic. You also need to avoid it if you have gallbladder problems, according to Drugs.com. You may need careful medical supervision if you have a history of gallstones, pancreatitis, diabetes, underactive thyroid, eatind disorders or liver disease or take other weight loss medicines, according to Drugs.com.
The drug can cause side effects, including gas that has oily discharge, hard-to-control bowel movements, diarrhea or loose stools and more frequent bowel movements. It also decreases absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, including vitamins A, D and E.
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