Fat-busting pill helps shed two pounds a week

LONDON - A new fat-busting pill could help people shed two pounds a week without restricting their diet, according to a study.

Start-up US drugs company Zafgen has announced the results of a promising human trial of a drug called ZGN-433.

In the study, a group of 24 obese women lost an average of two pounds a week over one month, the maximum safe recommended amount, reports the journal New Scientist.

The women also reported feeling fewer hunger pangs during the trial, according to the the Daily Mail.

The results were described as “stunning”, considering that the women continued to eat normally and were not given exercise advice.

The drug, which was initially developed for the treatment of solid tumours, works by increasing the breakdown of fat.

Previous research has suggested the more overweight you become, the harder it is for the body to shift it because the body becomes ‘programmed’ to make and store more fat.

This in turn makes the body less sensitive to the hormone insulin, which helps us to battle the bulge.

Scientists at Zafgen believe ZGN-433 blocks an enzyme which prevents several genes from functioning properly.

Zafgen said the pill could potentially help individuals to lose 20 to 40 percent of their body weight over nine months.

Steven Smith at the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute in Orlando said it was the first drug that appeared to be as effective as a gastric band.

The data will be presented at the Keystone Symposia on Obesity in Colorado.