FDA orders Meridia to be withdrawn in the U.S. and Canada
Article Source: msnbc.com
from:msnbc.comDiet pill pulled from market for heart risk
Seeded on Fri Oct 8, 2010 1:51 PM EDT (msnbc.com)
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One thing for sure....I would NEVER take a diet pill. Through the years almost everyone of them turns up sooner or later with "issues" of some sort......like possible death! We all know what we need to do...stop eating fattening things! It's a no brainer even if it is a VERY hard thing to do. If someone is very obese, they should be under a doctor's care to lose weight. Young people should be taught from day one, what healthy food IS and how to make good choices. It doesn't mean you can NEVER have a hamburger with fries. It means you may"choose" to have it on the weekend, a party, with your friends etc., but during the week eat those veggies and fruits. The decision to use diet pills is really crazy. If we would educate our children to make responsible decisions we MAY not need to worry about the issue of diet pills!
I don't think it's all about education. I am educated and know what and what not to eat. My personal experience is I am hungry all the time, even after eating a healthy meal. I do exercise as well. The meridia helped me by controlling my hunger. Willpower is a hard thing to fight when your brain and belly are telling you to eat because your still hungry.
JonesBK
You make it sound so easy. Obviously you've never had a problem with weight issues. Sometimes people have medical conditions that make them gain weight or make it difficult to lose weight (thryroid is one example). Others have psychological issues (like being sexually abused as a child) that contribute to the problem.
Yes, I agree, fruits and vegetables and exercise and healthy eating are important. It's just not always as black and white as you make it seem.
Exactly - Meridia was a prescription... you know, one of those fancy thing your DOCTOR gives you.......
Hey! msnbc their a difference between ordered and asked, Abbott was asked and voluntarily took it off the market. Stop trying to manipulate news with your mis-guided headings and choice of wrong words.
Yes, but it's similar to being fired vs. "resigning". The company wasn't going to voluntarily take its money-maker off the market until forced. "Asking" the company to recall it is akin to saying "take this off the market or we'll take it off the market for you". Given that approach, of course the company would then "voluntarily" take it off the market. Hardly any recalls are done by the agencies...they're all done by the companies "voluntarily".
Depending on what side of the fence your sitting on it does matter, and when news agencies make it sound like a company was trying to abuse the system like J&J did that is poor reporting.
The warnings were quite clear when the product was launched people and doctors have to study better before taking or prescribing meds. especially with the high volume of obese people here in the U.S.
I took this diet pill, lost 45 lbs. I had no health issues, but unfortunately gained all the weight back plus some when I stopped taking it. I stopped because it was no longer effective in my system.
Taking speed will do that to you. I know how innocent it all seems when it comes from a DOCTOR and it's made by a pharmaceutical company, but that doesn't change what it is. What it amounts to is speed, and speed is not good for your system.
This pill was not speed. It contained ingrediants to help block censors in your brain, it made you feel full. Speed will make you hyper and energetic, this pill did not do that.
If this drug only has adverse effects for people with a history of heart disease, then STOP giving it to those people! Why force a recall if it's effective for people with no history of heart trouble?
Well then, don't give it to people who have a history of heart disease!
Recent studies came up with that recall, it wasn't an issue when it first came out.
lindakay-1401776 I agree. It was used in our household and worked extremely well because we didn't have heart disease. Why ruin it for everyone? This is why drugs are so high. Somoene has a bad experience because they have prior health problems, and then a company with lots of R&D money invested in it has to pull it off the market.
I'm sorry for those affected by this drug...My thing is why are we not locking up the people responsible for putting this stuff out there. To me if one person dies...they are no better than the street hustler selling crack.
Only if a company is negligible do you put people in jail. I'm sorry you feel that way, but most people who die nowadays are on some kind of medication. That doesn't mean the medication caused the death. So we should lock someone up just because a person who died was taking their drug at the time? If a very obese person dies, it probably wasn't the drug that did it...it was the person's condition, not the drug. Obviously if there's gross negligence, then it's a different story. But a slightly elevated cardiovascular RISK only found AFTER THE FACT does not equal gross negligence. Had they covered up something, different story. You can't just lock up people because you perceive something sinister.
I can understand your point,however, do you remember the diet pill Phen-Phen that killed many people before being pulled. I don't remember any of Phizers reps apologizing for the release of a deadly drug. I know these types of choices are at the risk of the users but like the drug dealers on the street they know the side affects before hand and still released it for what..that all mighty dollar bill.
Pfizer didn't make Fen Phen...American Home Products did.
Every drug has side effects, and nothing we take is absolutely 100% safe. HOWEVER, for the vast majority, the product had miraculous medicinal benefits. The FDA approved it, and only upon gaining a better understanding of the SLIGHT safety risk associated with it requested that it be taken off the market.
Again, there is no foolproof 100% safe drug. But a drug shouldn't be pulled for a one-in-a-million side effect. That's why those side effects are listed. Additionally, people who would actually need this drug to combat obesity already have a heightened potential for heart disease. So either they keep "doing what they're doing" and have a heart attack "the old fashioned way" or they try to better themselves with a drug that helps most people and avoid heart problems. Unfortunately for some, it didn't work, but for most people, the benefits outweighed the risks, especially since a doctor was necessary to prescribe it in the first place.
So pick your poison...die from early heart disease because you're obese, or try to correct the problem with a drug that had been shown to be safe and effective at the time for most people. Do you not want anyone to have any drugs to help them? Because if you'll disapprove of any drug with side effects, you won't have any left!
Side effects, while unfortunate, are rare events. Are you going to outlaw cars because some people die in them? It's not similar to drug pushers at all...every company has the right to make money based on their own innovations. The company you work for has probably been involved in a lawsuit from time to time. Should we lock you or your company's representatives up because of it?
This does not cease to amaze me!!! Why is it that all these new medications that come out on the market within a year they have serious side effects. Apparently just because it is FDA approve means nothing!!! If you listen to all the listed side affects during these commercials I would never want to take them. People need to start weighing the risks before beleiving every thing that is put on the market!!
I took Meridia and now i have a serious case of arthritis called Seronegativespondaloarthropathy.
I started the Meridia in Jan of 2001. Within two weeks I could not walk, stand, sit, lay down, nothing. I could not work anymore. Now I m on SSD I can't make my bills, I work at Dairy Queen. Nobody would take my case against the makers of Meridia because it didn't have anything to o with my heart. If anyone has the same problem contact me at nec1963@hotmail.com
Hope all goes well with you all.
Not surprising at all that another medication has been pulled because it does more harm then good. Prescription drugs are NOT the answer to everything. People are too quick to take medication because we are raised in this society to find a quick fix to problems. People trust medications too much even after so much medication gets recalled every year. Regardless if it is dealing with weight management or depression and other mental health symptoms, you need to do the hard work. Pills are not going to cure everything, you cannot rely on them to "make it all better." expecially depression- you need to deal with your problems in therapy. the truth is , is that serious issues are not going to go away just by taking pills, they will always re-surface if you do not go through a therapeutic process. And pharmicuticals are making billions off of people's need to get a quick fix and creating harmful drugs that end up doing more harm. Also,by buying into the quick fix of pills, we are contributing to the increase of health care by making pharmicuticals billionaires and meanwhile, you are ending up with more problems then resolutions. I wish people would see that we are contributing to our own demise.
My daughter is a victim of Meridia.It's a damned shame that it has took so long to remove this killer drug off the market.Shows the power of greed over safety.
Not surprising that another drug was recalled- Prescription drugs are not the answer to every problem- How many drugs get recalled every year? Yet people still trust in taking them. Thats because we live in a society where we are taught to find a quick fix. Whether it is for weight management or mental health, we are so quick to take pills even after a large majority of meds do more harm than good. Especially for depression, anxiety & trauma- these conditions are not going to go away just by taking medication. Yes, medication can help but it will not make your problems "go away." You actually have to do the hardwork of therapy. Most people these days want to avoid the core of their issues and pharmicuticals know this and are profiting off of desperate people looking for help and relief. What kills me is that alot of drugs for depression could actually induce suicide ideation & attempts and increase depression- yet people are still trusting these medications! The truth is there are no quick fixs in life and we are helping pharmicuticals get extremely rich by buying into there very expensive medications, believing we will "be all better." They are making billlions off of people and we are contributing to it. This at least one reason why health care costs are out of control. People can have more power by simply not buying into the notion that "medication cures all." It has proven that it does not cure all and even does more harm than good. We are a society that wants to complain about our problems & goverment but does not want to change our lifestyle & face the core of our problems openly and honestly and these pharmicuticals & other multi-billion dollar corporations are profiting from it while we continue to struggle and end up with more problems thean we started with.
i love big pharma. ps. check out 'american journal of cardiology', brit doctor/researcher wants to put statins (proven bad) into fast food.
When will Americans wake up and realize that they are being manipulated by big Pharma?
Do you really want a drug that will help you lose weight? Heroin, meth, cocaine. These are all really great for losing weight. In fact, I will bet you that most of the thinnest stars in Hollywood are all using the stuff to stay thin. However, these drugs are deadly.
Meridia and all the other diet drugs are no better than street drugs. They all are associated with death, addiction, and other consequences. Just because its prescribed by an MD doesn't make it good. Talk to all those Oxycodone addicts out there.
That is a shame, it is a drug that has helped lot of people.
Do not prescribe it to patients with a history of heart disease. The chance for an Overweight person is fairly high in the first place.
If your sales are 20 billion and you pay out only 5 billion in legal fees and settlements, then your drug is a success. There is no residual expense to the carnage the pharm co. leaves behind.
I think it should be the patients choice. Every drug has side effects.
Aren't these studies supposed to be done BEFORE a drug gets approves for market?
the studies and approvals are done based on percentages and there is always fact fudging to move things along.
Diabetes and OBesity Drugs will always ruin the heart and are NOT needed!
Obesity and Diabetes is the direct result of food chemicals and the drug makers and FDA are laughing all the way to the BILLION DOLLARS BANK.
Food chemicals break the gut (insulin) and causes diabetes and Obesity (THIS IS PROVEN)
THAT IS WHY PEOPLE CANNOT LOSE WEIGHT! The diabetes drug makers took in 10 billion$$$ in one year!!! with no cure and drugs that gave heart attacks
The FDA knows this AND supports the drugmakers!!
A filmmaker has been reversing diabetes and Obesity in now 10 countries worldwide WITHOUT MEDICATIONS and the drug companies do not promote this SEE HERE http://spirithappy.wordpress.com
just google SPIRIT HAPPY DIET
Speaking of misinformation...wow. Food chemicals do not cause diabetes. And of course there's no cure for it, because you can't make the body re-start producing insulin. It's not the chemicals, it is the sheer caloric and fat intake that are making these people's bodies have heart disease and diabetes. It's pathetic that you blame the FDA and drugmakers for obese people's eating habits.
You say that there's no cure, yet you promote a filmmaker who's been "reversing" diabetes and obesity? C'mon now, don't lie. Anyone can live a healthier life, if they choose to. It's not the food or drug industry that's making these people unhealthy. Please stop lying.
I have taken Meridia for 10 mths and have lost over 50 lbs. For someone well over 300 lbs, and movement very limited - it has really helped. Prescribed by a Doctor who cares and we did numerous test and made sure blood pressure well under control. Of course, I was completely honest with Doctor and Doctor was completely honest with me. Discribed side effects and concerns with medication, we disussed at lenght ability to do without. Discussed concerns with continuing as was or getting assistance in losing weight. It is time people start taking their care into their own hands and be honest with the Doctor. If the Doctor doesn't show the concern and compassion - maybe that's not the Doctor for you. I will continue, although I am sure it will be harder without the assistance, but it is ashame because of the abuse of many, others must suffer.
Also from a family with a lot of inherited illness - read the label on any medication - you always wonder "are the side effects worse than the disease"