Serious side effects include certain birth defects (cleft lip and cleft palate), faster heart rate, suicidal thoughts or actions, and eye problems that could lead to permanent vision loss if not treated.
Drugs can be a help in obesity treatment, but they are not a magic bullet that allows us to shed pounds effortlessly. A small minority of people do find them a helpful adjunct to a diet and exercise program. In a study of 2,800 people who lost at least 30 pounds and kept them off for over a year, only 4 percent did it with the use of medications. Another approach is to lose some weight and use medication to help keep the weight off.

The bacteria Brucella causes brucellosis, an infectious zoonotic disease in humans. Symptoms and signs include fatigue, fever, sweating, and appetite loss. The preferred treatment is doxycycline and rifampin taken for six to eight weeks.
Sweat is seen on the forehead of German rowing athlete Christine Huth at the Gym at the Athlete's Olympic Village in Beijing on August 5, 2008, three days ahead of the start of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will take place in China between August 8 and 24. Again, leave room for flexibility and changes to your workouts. Instead of doing an intense spinning class because that’s what was on the schedule, allow yourself the freedom to choose a more relaxing yoga class instead. If you run out of time to do a 45-minute workout at the gym without feeling frazzled and rushed, make a deal with yourself that you’ll do a 15-minute ab routine in your living room instead. Sometimes, the commitment to intense workouts doesn’t allow us room to connect with how we feel and what we know is best for our bodies, so taking a moment to assess our feelings is key to sticking to a program long-term. If you’re following a rigid weight-loss program, going out to eat can cause a lot of anxiety. Will you be tempted by food off your plan? Will others comment about your eating habits? Will the chef cook your food correctly (light sauce, light seasoning and grilled rather than fried, please)? Although these are valid concerns when you’re on a healthy eating plan, they don’t have to cause you to become a hermit. Food programs can always be adapted for your own individual needs. For example, if you’re going a friend’s house, eat something that’s on your food plan before heading over, and then pick and choose what you’d like to eat once you’re there. Arriving full will decrease your likelihood to overeat foods that aren’t on your plan. Similarly, when you’re out to eat at a restaurant, pick foods that are on your plan, and don’t stress too much about the specifics, like how the protein or veggies are cooked or what sauce is on them. You can ask for light sauce or no sauce, or to sub vegetables for mashed potatoes, for example, but avoiding eating out altogether would make anyone go crazy! See the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter. The benefits of having a Type A personality include finding security in the structure and rigidity of diet and workout programs, but this personality type also needs to allow room for flexibility and changes. Just because you go off the course of one particular program doesn’t mean you’ve gone off-course altogether. Making choices that align with how you feel and what you want for yourself is a top priority and is essential to being successful while engaging with a specific and formulated weight loss program. Stephanie Mansour is a health and wellness journalist and consultant and weight loss coach for women. Audio Live TV Terms of Use Privacy Policy Ad Choices Accessibility & CC About Newsletters Transcripts