Not many people know that Reductil (sibutramine) has the full approval from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence or NICE. This organisation is a section of the UK National Health Service which was set up to give guidance on drugs, medicines, medical equipment and as well as clinical procedures based on their own research and the research of others. They also look into the cost effectiveness and clinical effectiveness and usefulness of all the above. They speak to the makers of drugs and equipment and also to people who have used the drugs or equipment to get their feedback. The approval from NICE is a much sought after thing and can take as much as a year to get after the product or drug is launched and given approval from the EMEA as it has to be thoroughly looked at and evaluated.

With regard to Reductil the recommendations from NICE are given to all hospitals and GP's  and so that standards are the same all over the UK for the use of sibutramine to treat obesity. The NICE recommendations for the NHS are that sibutramine must be seen as only a section of an overall treatment plan for obesity and not as a quick fix and easy way to lose weight. NICE also says that sibutramine must only be given to patients between 18 and 65 years of age who have already made proper attempts to shed weight by dieting and exercise.

NICE also says that people who use the drug must have a BMI that is greater than 27 if they suffer from an obesity related condition such as high cholesterol or type 2 diabetes, or they must simply have a BMI of 30 or greater.

NICE also specifies that whoever prescription of Reductil must go hand in hand with the offer of weight loss advice and counselling as well as advice with appropriate physical activities and other weight loss tips.

NICE says that people should only continue using Reductil for more than 4 weeks if they have shed a minimum of 2 kilos from the time they started to take the drug and that if you take it for more that 3 months you must have lost a minimum of 5 kilos for each 100kg of body mass from the treatment start. In any case NICE says that you should not use Reductil for more than a year.

Reductil is made by Abbott Laboratories and is an appetite supressant that makes you feel like not eating. It can increase your blood pressure and so you should check your blood pressure on a regular basis.