Anorectics, anorexigenics or appetite suppressants are drugs that reduce the desire to eat ("anorectic", from the Greek an- = "not" and oreg- = "extend, reach"). Oral medication Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive substance in the world. ... The appetite is the desire to eat food, felt as hunger. ...

("Anorectic" is also a term for an anorexic person, a person suffering from Anorexia nervosa.) Compare to "anorexic" alone which simply means, "without appetite". By contrast, anorexia nervosa, is a mental disorder regarding the loss of appetite. For other uses, see Anorexia nervosa (disambiguation). ...

Used on a short term basis clinically to treat obesity, some appetite suppressants are also available over the counter. Drugs of this class are frequently stimulants of the phenethylamine family, related to amphetamine (speed). Amphetamines were widely issued to British soldiers during the First World War in order to suppress their appetites and thus ease the strain on the over-stretched logistics network. The German military experimented with a similar system in 1945, when food supplies were very short in Germany. Following the Second World War, amphetamines were re-directed for use on the civilian market. Indeed, amphetamine itself was sold commercially as an appetite suppressant until it was outlawed in most parts of the world in the late 1950s due to increasing exploitation of its stimulant properties ("abuse"). Many amphetamines produce side effects including addiction, tachycardia and hypertension, making prolonged unsupervised use dangerous. See separate articles for over-the-counter trading and the medical condition Ornithine Transcarbamylase Deficiency. ... Oral medication A medication is a licenced drug taken to cure or reduce symptoms of an illness or medical condition. ... A stimulant is a drug that increases the activity of the sympathetic nervous system and produces a sense of euphoria or the feeling of being more awake. ... Phenethylamine (β-Phenylethylamine) is an alkaloid and monoamine. ... Amphetamine (alpha-methyl-phenethylamine), also known as speed, is a synthetic stimulant used to suppress the appetite, control weight, and treat disorders including narcolepsy and Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Logistics is the management of resources and their distribution. ... 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... A stimulant is a drug that increases the activity of the sympathetic nervous system and produces a sense of euphoria or the feeling of being more awake. ... Amphetamine (alpha-methyl-phenethylamine), also known as speed, is a synthetic stimulant used to suppress the appetite, control weight, and treat disorders including narcolepsy and Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. ... Addiction is chronic disorder proposed to be precipitated by a combination of genetic, biological/pharmacological and social factors. ... Tachycardia is an abnormally rapid beating of the heart, defined as a resting heart rate of 100 or more beats per minute in an average adult. ... For other forms of hypertension see hypertension (disambiguation). ...

Epidemics of fatal pulmonary hypertension and heart valve damage associated with anorectic agents have led to the withdrawal of products from the market. This was the case with aminorex in the 1960s, and again in the 1990s with fenfluramine (see: Fen-phen). Likewise, association of the related appetite suppressant phenylpropanolamine with hemorrhagic stroke led the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to request its withdrawal from the market in the United States in 2000, and similar concerns regarding ephedrine resulted in an FDA ban on its inclusion in dietary supplements, in 2004. In epidemiology, an epidemic (from Greek epi- upon + demos people) is a disease that appears as new cases in a given human population, during a given period, at a rate that substantially exceeds what is expected, based on recent experience (the number of new cases in the population during a... In medicine, pulmonary hypertension (PH) is an increase in blood pressure in the pulmonary artery or lung vasculature. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The outrageously crowded Woodstock festival epitomized the popular antiwar movement of the 60s. ... See also 1990s, the band The 1990s decade refers to the years from 1990 to 1999, inclusive, sometimes informally including popular culture from 2000 and 2001. ... Fenfluramine is a drug that was part of the Fen-Phen anti-obesity (the other drug being phentermine). ... Fen-phen was an anti-obesity medication (an anorectic) which consisted of two drugs: fenfluramine and phentermine. ... Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) is a drug of the phenethylamine family used as a decongestant and also as an appetite suppressant. ... For other uses, see Stroke (disambiguation). ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... Ephedrine (EPH) is a sympathomimetic amine commonly used as a decongestant and to treat hypotension associated with regional anaesthesia. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In spite of these precedents, numerous related compounds are still marketed today as appetite suppressants. These include:

• Phentermine (Fastin®, Adipex®, Ionamin® and others)
• Diethylpropion (Tenuate®)
• Phendimetrazine (Prelu-2®, Bontril®)
• Benzphetamine (Didrex®)
• Sibutramine (Meridia®, Reductil®) is a recent addition, which is used with orlistat by doctors to control obesity
• Rimonabant (Acomplia®), a cannabinoid receptor antagonist that will be available in 2006
• Oxyntomodulin
• Fluoxetine hydrochloride (Prozac)

and others PHENTERMINE Phentermine is a phenethylamine primary used as an appetite suppressant. ... Diethylpropion (Tenuate®) is a sympathomimetic stimulant drug marketed as an appetite suppressant. ... Phendimetrazine (Bontril®) is a weight loss medication. ... USA by Pharmacia. ... Sibutramine (Meridia® in the USA, Reductil® in Europe), usually as sibutramide hydrochloride monohydrate, is an orally administered agent for the treatment of obesity. ... Orlistat (marketed as Xenical) is a drug designed to treat obesity. ... Rimonabant (SR141716) is an anorectic anti-obesity drug. ... The cannabinoid receptors are a class of receptors under the G-protein coupled receptor superfamily. ... Antagonists In medicine and biology, a receptor antagonist is a substance that inhibits the normal physiological function of a receptor. ... Oxyntomodulin is a naturally occuring hormone found in the lower intestine. ... Fluoxetine hydrochloride is an antidepressant drug used medically in the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bulimia nervosa, premenstrual dysphoric disorder and panic disorder. ...

References

• Abenhaim L, Moride Y, Brenot F, Rich S, Benichou J, Kurz X, Higenbottam T, Oakley C, Wouters E, Aubier M, Simonneau G, Begaud B. Appetite-Suppressant Drugs and the Risk of Primary Pulmonary Hypertension. N Engl J Med 1996;335:609. Fulltext. PMID 8692238.
• Fishman AP. Aminorex to Fen/Phen: An Epidemic Foretold. Circulation 1999;99:156. Fulltext. PMID 9884392.

The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society. ...

External links

• Questions and Answers about appetite suppressant medication treatment from the Medical College of Wisconsin