November 30, 2005 -- Very little can be done about obesity, it seems, as neither drugs nor diets offer good long-term solutions, though it has not stopped people from trying. Messing with something as fundamental as metabolism is not only very difficult, it is fundamentally asking for trouble, as Phen-fen showed. A lot of research has gone into metabolism and food intake over the past 10 years, but good old clinical observation still makes all the difference. Rimonabant (Acomplia) by Sanofi-Aventis is based on the knowledge that cannabis smokers often experience extreme hunger pangs, familiarly known as “the munchies.” The drug has shown impressive trial results, but the FDA seems to be ignoring Acomplia. Why? We speculate on the answer...
