We all know the popular weight-loss prescription drug Xenical®.

Its OTC version - Alli™ - is the first and only OTC weight loss product approved by the FDA and it hits the market today.

A product of GlaxoSmithKline, Alli ™ (pronounced AL-eye) is approved for use by overweight adults in conjunction with a reduced-calorie, low-fat diet. Alli ™ helps people lose 50 per cent more weight than with diet alone because it works by decreasing the amount of fat absorbed by the body.

But does it really work? Yes it does, according to Dr. James Anderson, head of the UK College of Medicine Metabolic Research Group, and his colleagues and the fact that orlistat has been tested and the prescription version has been used since 1999:

"Our research showed that people taking orlistat and following low-fat diets lost almost five percent of their initial body weight, about seven to15 pounds, over four months.

While two to four pounds a month isn't dramatic, steady weight loss of this amount can have major health benefits. For example, the reduction in LDL-cholesterol, the bad-guy cholesterol, of 10 percent can reduce risk of heart attack by 20 percent.

Take note that it should be used in conjunction with a low-calorie and low-fat diet. Being an OTC drug, you can of course buy them without prescription but remember that taking the drug is not a ticket to binge eating. Taking Alli is not a quick fix to losing weight! Besides, Alli is being promoted not just as a diet pill but as a diet paln and program all together. Click here for more information.

[Any successful dieter knows that long-term weight loss is about lifestyle changes not quick fixes. While taking Alli may help you lose weight, it won't do all of the work for you. Anderson stresses a healthy diet and exercise plan are absolutely necessary to lose the weight and keep it off.]

"This is the first over-the-counter medicine that has proven effectiveness. It is my hope that people will take one capsule before each regular meal, breakfast, lunch, and supper, and alter their fat and calorie intake. If they commit to exercise six days a week, most people can lose weight steadily.

All of us are in this for the long haul and need to keep up healthy behaviors, not for days or weeks, but for months and years. Doing regular physical activity and making good food choices will help us be trimmer and give us more energy."

Find more details from the full report.

Hmm...I may be convinced by this. Are you? Anybody out there taking orlistat? Please do come out and let us know here if the drug really worked for you. First-hand accounts are always greatly appreciated.

[Alli ™ is the OTC version of Xenical®, according to this article. Xenical® (orlistat, 120 mg capsule) is a product of Roche while Alli™ is a product of GlaxoSmithKline.

I am a little confused, because it says here that Alli™ just became available in the US market today (June 15).

However, OTC Xenical (yes as brand name Xenical) is already available here (in the Philippines) where I am since late last year (2006).

For some reason, I haven't gotten around to buying. But I've always wanted to when I keep seeing the commercial on our local TV. ;-)]