By KAI ICHINO/ Staff Writer
December 13, 2022 at 07:00 JST
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in Tokyo's Kasumigaseki district (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
An anti-obesity drug, the first such medicine to become available in Japan, has been approved for manufacturing and sales by an expert panel of the health ministry.
The decision, made Nov. 28, will be finalized officially in March based on the application submitted by Taisho Pharmaceutical Co. in Tokyo. The new agent will be available at drugstores through pharmacists.
It will be the first medicine offered in the Japanese market to hamper the absorption of fat in the intestines and help treat obesity.
As its active ingredient reaches out to enzymes in digestive canals, the medicine, Alli, which commonly goes by the name of orlistat, is said to render it difficult for fat in food to be absorbed in the body.
It should be taken three times a day during or after meals. Use of the agent should be combined with physical activities and low-calorie diets.
The drug has already been made available in Europe and the United States, where it is sold by Britain’s GSK plc in those areas. Taisho Pharmaceutical will be responsible for the drug’s sales in Japan.
Alli will be available only to those 18 years or older. Patients expected to otherwise develop obesity soon should take the medicine, and men with waist measurements of 85 centimeters or more and women with waists of no less than 90 cm will be targeted.
The drug should not be taken by pregnant women or those suffering from lipid abnormalities, high blood pressure and other underlying conditions.
Clinical trials covering 1,400 individuals outside Japan showed people taking Alli lost 4.8 kilograms on average in one year, while a 2.3-kg weight reduction was reported among those taking a placebo free of active ingredients.
Alli’s mechanism of discharging fat through excrement without absorption has some side effects: watery feces; leakage of excrement and fat; and shortages of fat-soluble vitamins in the body.
Pharmacists are supposed to examine patients’ physical conditions on specialized check sheets at drugstores in Japan following the medicine’s planned approval. The drug will be distributed to patients after they are given guidance on taking it.
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