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0 6 - 0 7 - 2 0 0 2 Op de zwarte markt wordt Xenical yuppiedope
Het afslankmiddel Xenical is opgedoken op de zwarte markt. De pil wordt verkocht als gemaksmiddel om niet te dik te worden van etentjes en feestjes. Xenical, in Nederland alleen op recept verkrijgbaar, 'doet' in het straatcircuit vijf tot tien gulden per capsule.
Xenical zorgt er na inname voor dat gedurende 24 uur het lichaam ongeveer 30 procent minder van het geconsumeerde vet opneemt. Xenical is eigenlijk bedoeld om hardnekkige zwaarlijvigheid te bestrijden, maar doet het nu goed in de yuppenwereld waar geregeld buitenshuis wordt gegeten, zo constateert de Obesitas Vereniging Nederland of OVN.
Waar de Xenicalcapsules vandaan komen, is niet duidelijk. Gebruikers kopen de pil zonder buitenverpakking, maar nog wel in de oorspronkelijke doordrukstrips.
Via internet is de pil legaal op buitenlandse sites te koop, maar de uiteindelijke invoer ervan is illegaal. In Azië en Zuid-Amerika kunnen gebruikers Xenical vaak zonder recept kopen, maar ook dan geldt dat het invoeren van de pillen in Nederland niet is toegestaan zonder recept van een arts.
De pil wordt op uitgaansavonden aangeboden in tenminste drie dansgelegenheden in Amsterdam. Verkoop is doorgaans per strip van 21 of 42, voor de meesten genoeg om maandenlang 'risicoloos' uit eten te kunnen gaan. Xenical zit in Nederland niet in het ziekenfondspakket, omdat de werkzame stof Orlistat volgens het College voor Zorgverzekeringen niet voldoende effectief is. Ook kan het maag- en darmproblemen veroorzaken.
In binnen- en buitenland is de pil, die begin 1999 op de markt kwam, een regelrechte hit. De omzet van Xenical zorgde vorig jaar, ondanks de kosten, voor gunstige jaarcijfers van fabrikant Roche.
'Het spul wordt illegaal aangeboden', stelt M. van Spanje van de OVN. 'Als ik er naar vraag waar het vandaan komt, klapt men dicht. Duitsland, internet, misschien sportscholen, dat zijn allemaal mogelijke bronnen.'
Volgens Van Spanje doen gebruikers geheimzinnig over de koop en het gebruik. 'Ik moet het achter de rug om horen. Ik weet ook niet of ik er erg op tegen ben dat het op deze manier wordt gebruikt. We kunnen ons wel roomser dan de paus opstellen, maar we weten dat mensen slechte eetgewoonten kunnen hebben. Deze pil een keer gebruiken naast gezond eten, tja, dat is niet zo erg.'
Het ministerie van Volksgezondheid is niet gelukkig met het opduiken van Xenical. 'Dit zullen we in onderzoek nemen', stelt een woordvoerder.
Afslankpil op zwarte markt te koop. De Telegraaf, 24 jan 2001. 2 4 - 0 1 - 2 0 0 6 Update 16: Fat-Blocking Pill Wins Federal Endorsement
By ANDREW BRIDGES A pharmaceutical company hopes to begin selling this year a fat-blocking pill directly to millions of overweight Americans who now only have access to a prescription version of the drug.
The Food and Drug Administration could approve over-the-counter sales of orlistat in the next few months, said George Quesnelle, president of GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare North America. If orlistat wins a nonprescription OK, it would become the first such weight-loss pill to win the FDA's sanction. An FDA advisory panel voted 11-3 late Monday to recommend that the regulatory agency approve the nonprescription form of orlistat, which Glaxo would market as Alli (pronounced "ally"). The agency is not bound by the recommendation but usually follows the advice of its expert panels. "We are excited about the potential opportunity to provide consumers with an FDA-approved over-the-counter option that promotes gradual yet meaningful weight loss," Quesnelle said. When taken with meals, orlistat blocks the absorption of about one-quarter of any fat consumed. That fat - about 150 to 200 calories' worth - is passed out of the body in stools, which can be loose as a result. About half of patients in trials experienced gastrointestinal side effects, the company said. Glaxo officials cautioned that orlistat is no magic pill: In six-month clinical trials, obese people who took the pills lost on average 5.3 pounds to 6.2 pounds more than did those who were given dummy pills. Once they ceased taking the drug, its effect stopped and they began to regain the weight they had lost, said Dr. Julie Golden, a medical officer in the FDA's division of metabolism and endocrinology products. Quesnelle said people could resume use or seek help from a doctor if they gain weight. "Orlistat is a tool that will help people control their calorie intake and modify their diet," said John Dent, the pharmaceutical company's senior vice president of research and development. A bevy of potentially distasteful and embarrassing side effects struck about half the participants in trials of the drug. Those side effects, including fecal incontinence, gas and oily discharge that spotted the undergarments of trial participants, are likely to limit the appeal of the pill. "Have you considered placing a warning on the box, 'Don't take this product while wearing your new La Perla underwear?'" panel chairman Dr. Alastair Wood, referring to the Italian brand of lingerie, asked company executives. Discussion of the side effects recalled the hubbub that surrounded the FDA's approval in 1996 of the fat substitute Olestra, which also caused diarrhea and spotting. The agency initially required products containing Olestra to carry a warning label, making the fake fat the subject of jokes. In 2003, the FDA lifted the labeling requirement. Glaxo wants people to use Alli for only six months at a time as part of an overall diet and exercise regimen. The panel requested that the company conduct follow-up studies if and when the drug does reach the market, as well as rework the pill's label to ensure its proper use, Wood said. "I think the drug is safe enough to be OTC. It's an OTC indication. Although there are some i's that need to be dotted and t's crossed, it's suitable for OTC use," Wood said following the vote. Several panel members said they were concerned about the potential for abuse, especially by teens, as well as possible interactions with other drugs. Those drugs include cyclosporine, used by organ transplant patients, and warfarin, a blood thinner. "In my mind there are some profound safety concerns regarding cyclosporine and warfarin and I think the labeling needs to be very explicit and very conspicuous to inform people about these possible safety hazards," said panel member and consumer representative Sonia Patten, an anthropologist at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. Dr. Sidney Wolfe of the watchdog group Public Citizen urged the panel to reject the company's application, calling it a "desperate attempt to revive this barely effective drug by an OTC switch." Taking the opposite view was Deborah Fisher, a nurse from the Baltimore area, who told the panel: "We need this new solution to losing weight and keeping it off." "Eat less, move more: It sounds pretty simple, doesn't it? Well, as my kids say, not!" said Fisher, adding that she's dieted for 45 of her 52 years. Glaxo licensed orlistat from Roche to develop the nonprescription version. Roche has sold Xenical, a prescription version of the drug, since the FDA approved it in 1999. Roche plans to continue selling Xenical regardless of the FDA's action. Alli would contain half the dose of Xenical prescription capsules and would cost consumers $12 to $25 a week, Glaxo said. The company estimated 5 million to 6 million Americans a year would buy the drug if offered over the counter. Those numbers could mean at least $1.5 billion a year in retail sales. British-owned GlaxoSmithKline's U.S. operations are based in Philadelphia and Research Triangle Park, N.C. |
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[Definitie:] "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance."
(Wilmore and Costill) 
