Hormone Injections May Help Dieters
Is there a better weapon on the way in the battle against the bulge?
A study released today has found that injecting people with a synthetic hormone may help them lose weight and feel satisfied. The hormone, pramlintide, marketed under the name Symlin, is currently used to treat diabetes.
One team of researchers thinks they may have found a new purpose for it.
"We are very intrigued to find that pramlintide can actually have multiple effects on eating behavior, like curbing binge eating," says lead study author Dr. Christian Weyer. Weyer is director of clinical research at Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc., the San Diego based company that makes Symlin.
But if this treatment sounds too good to be true, that just might be the case. Some leading diet experts say Symlin won’t become a weapon in the fat fight anytime soon.
