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HCG Diet weight loss with HCG MAX Diet Plan is now offered through Hands On Health Wellness Center located in Nampa, Idaho. The HCG Diet weight loss program is the newest addition to the Center’s comprehensive offering of services, including Chinese Medicine, Amma Body Work, Colon Hydrotherapy, Zyto Virtual Clinic and Skin Care. Facilitated by the Center’s Certified HCG Weight Loss Coach, Alisha Smith, the HCG Diet Weight Loss Program incorporates detoxification, diet and nutritional supplementation.

Nampa, Idaho (PRWEB) February 24, 2012

HCG Diet weight loss with HCG MAX Diet Plan is now offered through Hands On Health Wellness Center located in Nampa, Idaho. The HCG Diet weight loss program is the newest addition to the Center’s comprehensive offering of services, including Chinese Medicine, Amma Body Work, Colon Hydrotherapy, Zyto Virtual Clinic and Skin Care. Facilitated by the Center’s Certified HCG Weight Loss Coach, Alisha Smith, the HCG Diet Weight Loss Program incorporates detoxification, diet and nutritional supplementation.

The HCG Diet originated in the 1950’s when a British endocrinologist, Dr. ATW Simeons, began researching the use of hCG and its effect on the hypothalamus gland to help people lose abnormal fat. After years of research with hCG, Dr. Simeons successfully created the HCG Diet Plan to help people lose extraordinary amounts of abnormal fat in a relatively short period of time. While Dr. Simeons’ research used injectable hCG, today hCG can be found as either a prescription or a homeopathic and is administered through injections, hCG drops, pills, lozenges, sprays and/or topically through hCG creams.

The HCG Max Diet Plan offered through the Center is a comprehensive 4-Phase HCG Diet protocol inclusive of detoxification, diet, lifestyle changes and an entire line of clinically-formulated HCG Diet support products for before, during and after the HCG Diet. The Center’s short-term and long-term weight loss results through the use of the clinically-developed HCG Max Diet Plan are proving to be a phenomenal success.

“I want to thank you Alisha for convincing me to try the HCG diet. You've made my New Year start very different since I am not making the same old resolution of losing weight but rather having the confidence of already being there. I know I am in control and that I won't ever put the excess weight back on, not to mention that I love getting dressed again and feeling great!” Jonette Flores.

Alisha Smith is Hands On Health Wellness Center’s Certified HCG Weight Loss Coach. She received her certification after undergoing extensive HCG Diet training with the HCG Diet Expert®, Beth Golden, PhD, ND that focused not only on the HCG Diet Plan and how to handle tough cases, but also on education about natural health and nutrition, as well.

As an HCG Max Diet Plan Practitioner, Alisha has also chosen to participate in the HCGDietPlan.com Professional Internet Partnership Program (PIPP). Participation in the PIPP Program provides HCG Dieters with a membership to the website, as well as many other features and benefits such as a state-of-the-art Virtual Clinic, a comprehensive natural health Education Center and a Facebook-like HCG Diet Members-only wellness Forum, all of which are not found with other HCG Diet products and/or programs. Dieters also have 24/7 access to HCG Diet support, education, on-line shopping and the HCG Diet Forum, as well as access to scheduled live on-line HCG Diet coaching, all designed with the goal of increased long term weight loss success and better overall health.

In the HCG Diet Forum, Dieters can create a profile, upload photos, post updates to Facebook and connect with Alisha, as well as other dieters, to help chronicle and support their weight loss journey. Combined with the Education Center, HCG Dieters can get answers to and find information on the most common HCG Diet questions and concerns, as well as participate in live on-line chats and watch live broadcasts on topics including the HCG Diet and more.

Access to the HCGDietPlan.com Education Center and Forum is subscription based for members only. Dieters doing the HCG Max Diet Plan through Alisha at Hands On Health Wellness Center receive a free 12-month subscription with their HCG Diet Plan Program.

For more information about the HCG Diet, the HCG Max Diet Plan’s 4-Phase System and how Hands On Health can help facilitate successful long-term weight loss, Alisha will be conducting free Healthy Weight Loss and Detoxification Workshops at 7:15pm on February 28th, March 27th and April 24th, 2012. Hands On Health Wellness Center is located at 311 11th Ave S in Nampa, Idaho. To sign up for a Workshop or to get started with the HCG Max Diet Plan weight loss program, call (208) 466-0901.

About Alisha Smith, dipl ABT NCCAOM, NTP

Alisha Smith is a diplomate in Asian Body Work with the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, as well as a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner. In addition to HCG Diet training and the HCG Weight Loss Coach Certification, Alisha has also received training in the areas of Amma Bodywork, Chinese medicine, massage therapy, essential oils and reflexology. She is also a certified Doula childbirth coach.

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Alisha Smith
Hands On Health Wellness Center
208-466-0901
Email Information

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HCG Diet Weight Loss with HCG MAX® Diet Plan Now Offered Through Hands On Health Wellness Center in Idaho

SALT LAKE CITY -- More bad news has recently emerged for soda drinkers who favor zero-calorie beverages. Diet drinks may not be the health solution that they were originally celebrated to be.

A new study found a 43 percent greater risk of stroke or heart attack among people who drank a can of diet soda a day compared to people who didn't drink any. Although diet sodas have less sugar than the regular sodas, diet drinks may have some equally unhealthy side effects.

A new study found a 43 percent greater risk of stroke or heart attack for people who drank a can of diet soda a day compared to people who didn't drink any.

The study conducted by the University of Miami and Columbia University followed more than 2500 people over a 10 year period. Of these people, 591 men and women had a heart attack, stroke or died of cardiovascular causes - including 31 percent of the 163 people who drank a diet soda daily at the start of the study.

Researchers say they found a potential association, but haven't pinpointed the exact cause yet. Research in rats shows that artificial sweeteners may potentially increase overall food intake, as well as weight.

However, people that drink diet soda tend to have more unhealthy lifestyles, and so the study can't specifically be linked to diet soda as a cause.

Originally posted here:
Diet drinks linked to risk of heart attacks, strokes

For the first time in 13 years, a new prescription weight-loss pill appears poised to hit the U.S. market.

On Wednesday, an advisory committee of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended that the agency approve Qnexa, a combination pill of two existing drugs — the anti-seizure medication topiramate and the appetite suppressant phentermine — to aid weight loss in clinically obese patients. The FDA often follows the recommendation of its advisory committees, but is not required to do so; the agency has until April 17 to make its final decision.

The panel’s 20-to-2 vote in favor of approval was a decisive reversal of a previous panel’s decision in 2010, when Qnexa was rejected over concerns of increased heart rate and birth defects. That panel concluded that the drug’s weight-loss benefits did not outweigh its potential risks.

MORE: Whither Qnexa? A Brief History of Diet Pills and the FDA

In clinical trials, Qnexa led to 10% weight loss over a year, but it was also linked with increased heart rate and birth defects when taken during pregnancy. According to the latest studies, one component of the pill, topiramate, increases the risk of oral clefts two- to five-fold when taken by pregnant women, the FDA said.

That’s why, if approved, the drug’s maker, Vivus Inc., will carefully limit its potential health risks. To reduce the risk of birth defects, women of childbearing age who use the drug will be advised to use contraception simultaneously and to get monthly pregnancy testing. Patients will also be advised to stop taking the drug after three months if it doesn’t work.

Doctors and health-care providers who prescribe the drug will be trained on the medication’s risks and benefits, and the pill will be made available only to registered pharmacies, whose pharmacists have been educated about the drug’s special prescribing circumstances and have agreed to ask doctors to abide by them.

The drug would be targeted at people with a body mass index, or BMI, of 30 or above — the clinically obese. Those with a BMI of 27 or above — considered overweight — would also be eligible if they have other weight-related health problems, such as diabetes or sleep apnea.

MORE: The Diet-Pill Dilemma

Qnexa clearly isn’t for everyone, but with more than 35% of American adults now tipping the scales into obesity, some experts believe that a new diet drug is sorely needed — as many have pointed out, there is currently no treatment that bridges the gap between diet and exercise, which doesn’t work for many, and bariatric surgery.

“There is an urgent need for better pharmacologic options for individual patients with obesity,” Elaine Morrato, an assistant professor of health systems, management and policy at the University of Colorado and a member of the FDA advisory committee, told CBS News. “I believe Qnexa demonstrated a meaningful efficacy benefit and that there are consequences to not treating obesity.”

The need appears urgent enough that the panel voted to approve Qnexa without requiring Vivus to conduct further studies on the drug’s potential heart risks before approval. Instead, the panel strongly urged the company to do the studies once Qnexa is on the market. “Of all the obesity drugs, this one has the highest efficacy in terms of weight loss, so that shifts the balance in terms of requiring a post-approval study rather than a pre-approval study,” Sanjay Kaul, a professor of cardiology at David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA Cedars Sinai Medical Center, told Bloomberg.

MAGAZINE: Getting to No: The Science of Building Willpower

Other panel members were wary of Qnexa’s potential side effects, however, and voted against approval, arguing that more safety studies are needed first. If the agency approves the drug without such data, Dr. Michael Lauer, committee member and director of cardiovascular sciences at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, told the Los Angeles Times, “it would be a decision based on hopes, surrogates and suppositions.”

Whether or not Lauer is right, the decision now lies with the FDA. If the agency follows the panel’s advice, it would be welcome news for legions of obese Americans who have few other options. Currently, the only one other diet drug available by prescription is Xenical, which works by preventing the body from absorbing fat from food (it is also available over the counter in lower doses under the brand name Alli), but is rarely used.

Qnexa could fill a crucial need. As Joe Nadglowski, president and CEO of Obesity Action Coalition, a patient advocacy group, told WebMD: there is “a significant treatment gap from Weight Watchers to [bariatric] surgery.”

Alice Park is a writer at TIME. Find her on Twitter at @aliceparkny. You can also continue the discussion on TIME’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

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Qnexa: As Diet Drug Nears FDA Approval, Who Benefits?

Food and Drug Administration advisers voted against the pleas of consumer advocates on Wednesday to recommend approval of what would be the first new diet drug to hit the US market in 13 years. Called Qnexa, the pill is a combination of two older drugs – one itself a diet pill called phentermine, and an anti-seizure drug that appears to help suppress appetite as part of the combination.

Such a new drug is desperately needed, with two-thirds of Americans overweight or obese. Current weight-loss products are limited and have only modest effects. But the field has been littered with failures, as many drugs have often deadly side effects – such as the heart valve damage caused by the once popular combination of phentermine and fenfluramine—Fen-Phen for short.

Two other companies have diet drugs up for approval too, and the FDA advisers recommended extra studies on the heart effects of all the drugs.

“Of all the obesity drugs, this one has the highest efficacy in terms of weight loss, so that shifts the balance in terms of requiring a post-approval study rather than a pre- approval study,” Sanjay Kaul, a cardiologist at UCLA, said at the FDA panel meeting.

Public Citizen objected.

“Public health cannot tolerate yet another drug approval for a diet drug not accurately assessed for cardiovascular risks, especially in light of suggestive findings of such risks with Qnexa,” said Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group. “The danger of another approved diet drug hitting something vital – the cardiovascular system – is no longer acceptable when it could be prevented by a large clinical trial powered to evaluate such risk prior to approval.”

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FDA Advisers Recommend New Diet Drug

The diet drug Qnexa has cleared a major hurdle toward eventual Food and Drug Administration approval. An independent panel of medical experts who advise the agency voted Wednesday that Qnexa's significant weight-loss benefit outweighed its potential risks.

The hearing was held in Silver Spring, Md. The surprisingly positive 20-2 vote in favor of approval moves the decision on Qnexa into the hands of the FDA, which will issue a final ruling later this year.

The agency typically follows the recommendations of an advisory committee but is not bound by it. If approved, as is now expected, Qnexa would be the first prescription diet drug to reach the market since 1999. The drug, made by Vivus Inc.of Mountain View, Calif., is a combination of the anticonvulsant topiramate and the appetite suppressant phentermine.

Studies show the medications produced an average of about 10% loss of body weight in the first two years of use. "The benefits of that degree of weight loss have been clear and unambiguous," said Dr. Stephen Smith, scientific director at the Translational Research Institute in Orlando, Fla., who was not involved in the vote. "We fully understand the topiramate risk, and the phentermine risk we have a pretty good handle on as well." The committee's vote, he said, "recognizes that doing nothing in obesity has it consequences."

More than 35% of American adults are obese and another third are overweight. Only one prescription diet drug is available in the United States. However, both topirimate and phentermine have side effects. Last year, the FDA reclassified topiramate as a class D drug, meaning it carries risks to a fetus but may still be acceptable for use in pregnant women despite the risks.

Clinical trials on Qnexa also showed an increased risk of birth defects -- typically cleft lip -- in women who became pregnant on the drug. The study also found that users have an increase in heart rate. These side effects led to a thumbs-down vote when Qnexa came before the FDA advisory committee in 2010. The FDA subsequently denied approval in October 2010, citing potential safety problems.

But officials for Vivus Inc. have proposed a tightly controlled system for prescribing Qnexa to prevent birth defects, including healthcare provider training, monthly pregnancy testing, a patient medication guide and limits on which pharmacies can dispense the medication, such as registered mail-order pharmacies.

"We will know who the prescribers are. We will know who has been trained," said Dr. Barbara Troupin, senior director of global medical affairs for Vivus. "We are confident the Qnexa [risk management program] balances the safeguards while allowing access for appropriate patients." Moreover, the panel strongly encouraged that Vivus conduct a post-marketing study to better understand the potential cardiovascular side effects of Qnexa.

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Diet drug Qnexa should be approved, panel says

PLANO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Snapple today officially launches Diet Half ‘n Half Lemonade Iced Tea, joining the ranks of such great combinations as the spork, labradoodle and the keyboard guitar. The half lemonade, half iced tea blend is made from healthy green tea, tasty black tea and has only ten calories per 16oz bottle. While some may argue that one half may be better than the other, Snapple has brought the two together to create a low calorie option of this perfect combination.

“Some combinations are too perfect to pass up,” said Regan Ebert, vice president of marketing for Snapple. “Snapple is always looking to make the Best Stuff even better and the new Diet Half ‘n Half offers our fans a tasty low calorie combination of two classic flavors that is sure to please, whichever side you’re rooting for.”

To settle the score between Lemonade and Iced Tea lovers everywhere, Snapple is challenging fans to battle it out and vote for which side reigns supreme as the blend’s better half. Fans can vote for their favorite flavor on Twitter by using the #Lemonade@Snapple and #Tea@Snapple hashtags, as seen in the new drink’s advertising spot; via Snapple’s Facebook page; and on Snapple.com.

By participating, fans can enter for a chance to win daily Snapple prizes. A few lucky winners will also receive $1,000 prizes, half for them to keep and half for their charity of choice. For additional details, go to Snapple.com. Fans can also visit Snapple on Facebook for one of the 250,000 coupons for $1.00 off of a Snapple 6-pack that the brand will give away in celebration of the new beverage.

Snapple Diet Half ‘n Half is now available at participating retailers nationwide in individual 16-ounce bottles for $1.39 and 6-packs for $5.99. It is also available in 32oz, 64oz and 16oz 12-Packs. For full details and a list of participating retailers, visit http://www.Snapple.com.

About Snapple

Snapple, a brand of Dr Pepper Snapple Group (NYSE: DPS - News), is a leader in great-tasting premium beverages. Founded in 1972 by three childhood friends, Snapple got its start in Greenwich Village, New York, and is now available throughout the United States and numerous countries worldwide. Snapple prides itself on developing, producing and marketing a wide variety of premium beverages, including ready-to-drink iced teas, juice drinks, 100% juices and water. Known for its down-to-earth approach to marketing, Snapple continues to delight fans across the world. DPS is a leading producer of flavored soft drinks, marketing Snapple and 50-plus other brands across North America and the Caribbean. For more information on Snapple, visit http://www.snapple.com or http://www.drpeppersnapple.com.

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Snapple Officially Launches Diet Half ‘n Half Lemonade Iced Tea

Most folks love food and want to be healthy. Oftentimes, the two work against each other, leaving us discouraged and out of shape.

The Eat-Clean Diet uses one of our favorite things, food, and shows us how to make it work for us to help lose weight and achieve overall health, leading to a happier lifestyle with more energy and productivity.

Tosca Reno, the author of the popular “Eat-Clean Diet” series, has drawn attention to clean eating, but she did not invent it. The Eat-Clean Diet’s principles are based on the diet that bodybuilders, gymnasts, marathon runners and other athletes have followed for years, and that nutritionists and dieticians suggested to patients to help with health problems long before Reno released her first book.

Despite its name, the Eat-Clean Diet is not a diet at all, but a lifestyle change that takes weight off and keeps it off, unlike diets that require calorie-counting and depriving the body of certain food groups.

“I’ve done Weight Watchers in the past, but I always found myself obsessed with points,” said Nikki Banik, a wife and mother of two from Winder and the owner of Nikki Banik Photography. “(I would look for) processed food with the least amount of points so I could eat as much as possible — and never getting enough, or caring to get enough — of the good-for-you, healthy stuff.”

The Eat-Clean Diet shows people how to replace unhealthy foods that have little or no nutritional value with healthy foods full of nutrients that the body needs. It does not require counting calories and actually suggests eating more — five to six small meals throughout the day — to keep from getting too hungry, to provide extra energy and to keep the body’s metabolism running.

“A lot of people are trying to go extended periods of time without eating, and really we need to eat on a regular basis and be sensitive to our hunger cues,” said Connie Crawley, an extension nutrition and health specialist with the University of Georgia’s College of Family and Consumer Sciences and a registered dietitian. “If you are ravenous, you’re going to crave high-sugar, high-fat foods, which are going to make you eat more.”

In her books, Reno breaks down each of the Eat-Clean Diet principles, including eating several small meals, drinking lots of water and consuming healthy fats, fresh fruits and vegetables.

Simple sugars or white refined sugars are taboo, because they have been linked to immune suppression, inflammatory conditions and dramatic spikes in blood sugar, according to “The Eat-Clean Diet Recharged!”

“Basically, what (the Eat-Clean Diet is) recommending is for people to go back as closely to what I call the hoof and the plant as possible,” Crawley said. “In other words, trying to get as little between you and the original source of the food as possible, and that certainly is a very admirable thing to do, and it’s what we at the extension office are recommending that people do.”

Banik looked into clean eating after hearing about people who eliminated almost all white foods from their diet. She thought it couldn’t hurt to eliminate white bread and replace it with whole grain bread and eliminate white pasta and white refined sugar. Soon after that, she began following all of the diet’s principles.

“It wasn’t so much that I wanted to try a ‘diet.’ Rather, I wanted to create a better lifestyle for my family and myself where we would be in tune with our bodies and our food,” Banik said.

Banik and her family will have followed the Eat-Clean Diet principles for one year this March.

“For me, I dove in head first,” Banik said. “I emptied out our kitchen cabinets and refrigerator, donated the food and restocked it. That was expensive, but worth it. I’ve lost 25 pounds eating clean, and my husband has lost about 30 pounds. Also, my husband’s blood pressure is normal, and he is off of blood pressure medication. This did not happen when we did Weight Watchers but after we had been eating clean for a few weeks.”

Another change was the behavior and attitude of Banik’s 5-year-old daughter.

“My 5-year-old’s behavior completely turned around,” Banik said. “I feel like she is finally herself. The excessive whining, moaning and groaning is gone. It is amazing how negatively processed food affects our children.”

When people begin the Eat-Clean Diet, they typically lose 3 to 5 pounds in the first week, but the diet isn’t just about becoming leaner.

“Eating clean is just eliminating things that your body does not need,” Banik said. “It is not a diet. It is a cleaning of your system, and once you eat clean, truly 100 percent clean, you will really not want to eat any other way. We always eat clean at home. When we go out to eat or to someone’s house, (it’s harder to) eat clean. So we try not to eat out as much.”

Proponents say eating clean can lower one’s risk of heart disease, stroke and chronic lower respiratory diseases, and even give a person more energy, brighter eyes, healthier teeth, bright and clear skin and stronger hair and nails.

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The Eat-Clean Diet

Put down your diet soda and listen up. Drinking a bubbly zero-calorie beverage daily may increase your risk of heart attack and stroke by 44 percent, according to new research of 2,600 older adults over a 10-year span.

For decades, manufacturers marketed diet colas as a healthier diet-conscious alternative to regular sodas that contain large amounts of sugars linked to health risks such as obesity and diabetes.

Subsequent research tied diet sodas, which replace sugar with exotic sweeteners such as aspartame or stevia, with increase risks for heart disease.

"What we saw was an association," Hannah Gardener, lead researcher with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, told Reuters. "These people may tend to have more unhealthy habits."

Those who drank diet soda daily tended to be heavier and had existing heart risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes and unhealthy cholesterol levels, Reuters reported.

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Since the Journal of General Internal Medicine published the study online Jan. 27, the study has become increasingly popular online. Researchers at Columbia University in New York City also contributed to the study.

The researchers looked into the diet soda drinking habits of 2,564 residents of northern Manhattan over a 10-year period and found that those who drank diet soda daily had increased risks for vascular disease, including heart disease and stroke.

The researchers controlled the volunteers for several factors such as smoking, physical activity, body mass index, diet and alcohol consumption.

No risk was found for people who drank regular soft drinks or drank diet sodas from time to time. The correlation was only found with daily diet soda drinkers.

The only way researchers said to find a cause-and-effect would be to randomly assign people to drink diet soda or not and then follow their health over the years.

Gardner said such as study would be "difficult and costly" to undertake since it would involve following so many volunteers.</

More:
Diet Soda and Heart Attacks: Study Finds Daily Diet Soda Increases Risk

Diet books have long promised better health, smaller waists and lifetime sex appeal. But this year’s crop doesn’t just hope to help your weight-loss efforts. Most come with a secondary promise: brain health, balanced hormones, lower blood sugar, pain elimination.

Here’s a sample of what’s new:

The New Atkins for a New You Cookbook, by Colette Heimowitz (Touchstone; $19.99): The diet that shouts “Lose up to 15 pounds in 2 weeks!” now has a cookbook of 200 low-carb recipes you can make in 30 minutes or less. It hardly sounds like a diet if you get to eat Lime-Chili Grilled Wings or skirt steak with chimichurri sauce. Even its No-Bake Cheesecake doesn’t sound half bad.

Master Your Metabolism, by Jillian Michaels (Three Rivers Press; $15): The book by The Biggest Loser’s meanest trainer ever is now out in paperback. Michaels reaches out to yo-yo dieters with a plan that promises to tap into fat-burning hormones. She urges readers to dump “anti-nutrients” such as hydrogenated fats, refined grains, high-fructose corn syrup and artificial sweeteners in favor of lean meats, whole grains and fresh fruit and vegetables.

The Doctors: 5-Minute Health Fixes, by The Doctors, with Mariska van Aalst (Rodale; $17.99): The physicians known for their popular TV show offer quick advice — now in paperback — on a variety of health topics, including weight. Diet advice boils down to five tips: Cook your own food at home; get help if you’re an emotional eater; walk 30 minutes a day, five days a week; eat carbs, protein and fat at every meal; watch portion size.

The Women’s Health Diet, by Stephen Perrine, with Leah Flickinger and the editors of Women’s Health (Rodale; $25.99): If you can remake your body in “just 27 days” as the book cover promises, maybe your body wasn’t in such bad shape after all. Still, if you focus on healthy foods, get rid of sugary drinks and exercise as the book advocates, you’re likely to lose fat and build muscle — and that’s what we’re all after, right? Its authors spend a fair amount of space going over the “Secrets of the Slim” — eating fresh produce, never skipping breakfast, learning to love salad. It provides plenty of resources to help you navigate supermarket aisles and restaurant menus.

The Men’s Health Diet, by Stephen Perrine, with Adam Bornstein, Heather Hurlock and the editors of Men’s Health: This version for men is much like its women’s counterpart, save for language that’s more likely to appeal to guys. For example, “Secrets of the Slim” becomes “Rules of the Ripped.” Its list of best foods for men are much like those of women, but organized differently and geared to men’s tastes.

The Diet Detective’s All-American Diet, by Charles Platkin (Rodale; $25.99): The book’s cover refers to Platkin as a Dr., but he’s a Ph.D., not an M.D. This public-health advocate has put forth a book that would only appeal to people who don’t want to cook and have no interest in learning how. It focuses on exercise in one short chapter, then lays out a plan for building meals out of convenience foods such as Pop-Tarts (no kidding), instant oatmeal, Jimmy Dean sausage biscuits and Stouffer’s lasagna. Not to completely diss the plan; it includes hundreds of convenience foods, including some that are lower in sodium, fat and-or sugar and will surely help you control how much you eat.

Six Weeks to Skinny Jeans, by Amy Cotta (Rodale, $24.99): The author’s picture-perfect derriere on the cover will surely catch the attention of any woman who’s looked backward at a three-way mirror and shuddered. Cotta, a Nashville-area fitness trainer, provides before and after photos of her clients — real women with lives, jobs, children and imperfect bodies — who lost a jeans size or two in six weeks. Her plan will have you watching your carbs, relying on low-glycemic foods, working out and keeping a diet-exercise log.

 

The Houston Chronicle

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Find a new diet book to keep your goals on track

Diet drugs have failed to impress government health regulators in recent years with several prospective medications being denied approval and another drug taken off the market. Hopes for the first new diet pill in about 13 years now rest with a meeting Wednesday in Washington, D.C., to discuss Qnexa.

An advisory committee reporting to the Food and Drug Administration will, for the second time, hear evidence for or against the approval of Qnexa, which is a combination of two existing drugs -- the anticonvulsant topirimate and the diet drug phentermine -- that promote weight loss. The medication, made by the Mountain View, Calif.-based Vivus, first came before the FDA advisory committee in July 2010, which voted to deny approval. The FDA subsequently denied approval in October 2010, citing potential safety problems.

However, FDA officials left the door open for Qnexa, asking Vivus to provide additional data on whether the medication can cause birth defects and what the risk of birth defects might be. The agency has also requested data on whether the slight increase in heart rate that is linked to the drug increases the risk of cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke.

There are fewer questions about Qnexa's ability to promote weight loss. A two-year study of 4,323 people showed an average weight loss of at least 10% of total body weight and  improvements in blood pressure.

Vivus officials have maintained a positive front about the drug's eventual approval. But documents filed in advance of Wednesday's meeting suggest some hard questions await Vivus officials. The FDA remains concerned with a potential increased risk of cleft palate in babies born to women who become pregnant while taking the medication. A key issue is whether Vivus can persuade the FDA that the drug will not be prescribed haphazardly to women who could become pregnant. Questions also remain regarding potential heart risks for adults taking the drug.

More is at stake than just Qnexa. The FDA has rejected applications for two other diet medications in the past two years (both of those drugs will also be resubmitted with additional follow-up data), and health professionals who work in the obesity field are growing impatient with the FDA's demands.

The Obesity Society, the Obesity Action Coalition and other medical organizations have been working with the agency for several years to discuss expanding treatment options for patients with obesity. Some obesity experts have said they feel the FDA is holding weight-loss drugs to a higher standard compared with medications that treat other conditions.

But obesity has severe health ramifications, noted James Zervios, a spokesman for the Obesity Action Coalition.

"There just aren't a lot of tools in the tool box when you're treating obesity," Zervios said. "We need other options for people."

While diet and exercise is useful for people who require only a small weight loss, and surgery is available for people with severe obesity, there are fewer options for the "in between" overweight individual, Zervios said. Qnexa targets people with a body mass index of 30 or above or a BMI of 27 or above for people who also have weight-related health problems, such as diabetes or sleep apnea. A BMI of 25 to 29 indicates overweight and 30 or greater is considered obese.

FDA officials are sympathetic to the need, Zervios said. But the potential for Qnexa to cause birth defects appears to be of great concern to the agency.

"The fear is that this drug will be used by all," he said. "Our stance is there needs to be strict guidelines in place so the right individuals are gaining access to it. It's not for people who want to lose five or 10 pounds."

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Diet drug Qnexa will get a second look

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