At Ukmedix we are a little apprehensive about having Alli available OTC

The diet pill Xenical was researched and developed by Roche the Swiss drug giant but the licencing for the use of the orlistat drug in Alli the new half dose version was given GlaxoSmithKline in 2004. The way it was done was by giving GSK non-prescription rights to orlistat so this means that they are not allowed to sell the drug in the USA if a prescription is required. Following the announcement that Alli has become the first diet drug to be approved by the FDA that can be sold over the counter Roche have concluded a further agreement with GSK regarding worldwide licencing rights to Alli.

The agreement that was concluded on February 20th now specifically states that GSK is allowed to sell orlistat in the half dose version Alli all over the world except in Japan and the US (where a separate agreement exists). It is likely that GSK following on from its success in getting the approval from the FDA will be busy getting approvals for Alli in the UK and other European countries.

At Ukmedix we are a little apprehensive about having Alli available over the counter because we feel that while orlistat is not a very dangerous drug it can be abused and it is far more likely to be sold to the wrong people by a pharmacist than it is if a doctor has to issue a prescription.

Many people have bad experiences with Xenical when they don’t use it properly and they either take too much which is dangerous or they continue to eat fatty and unhealthy meals that give them unpleasant side effects. At Ukmedix we reckon that many people will not bother getting doctor’s advice before buying Xenical and will just buy Alli and take a double dose. This is not how the drug should be used and could result in a lot of diet drug abuse.

We hope that pharmacists are being made aware of these facts in the United States.