- general information
- Chemical composition and principle of action
- Contraindications and harm
- “Beware of scammers”: don’t be fooled
- Analogues and substitutes
- A few words about self-medication
- To drink or not to drink
Pills have been and remain one of the most popular products for weight loss.
This is not surprising, because those who are losing weight are not required to exhaust themselves with physical activity, give up their favorite treats, or reconsider their work and rest schedule. Make sure you take your medications on schedule and lose those hated kilograms and centimeters. A dream, and nothing more! However, alas, in reality everything turns out to be far from being as rosy as the manufacturer promises. And it’s good if, after completing the course, the lost weight simply returns to its original levels, and does not increase, simultaneously exacerbating a dozen diseases. A striking example of such a development is the weight loss drug Lindaxa, the benefits and harms of which we will talk about in this article.
Pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics
The substance sibutramine blocks the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine . The patient's body weight is reduced due to the effect of this drug on the centers that are responsible for nutritional satiety. This effect occurs due to the blockade of the reuptake of substances norepinephrine and serotonin. At the same time, Lindaxa does not block MAO reuptake and has no affinity for the main receptors.
Biotransformation of sibutramine occurs in the liver, resulting in the formation of active metabolites . The highest concentration of the drug in the blood plasma occurs after 1-1.5 hours, after a single dose, after 3 hours for active metabolites. The metabolism of drugs is not affected by the patient’s age, gender, or weight.
Lindaxa drug interactions
Caution must be exercised when using sibutramine simultaneously with drugs that affect the activity of the CYP3A4 enzyme. CYP3A4 inhibitors include ketoconazole, erythromycin, troleandomycin and cyclosporine. Simultaneous administration of ketoconazole or erythromycin with sibutramine led to an increase in the concentration of sibutramine metabolites in the blood plasma. Average heart rate increased by an average of 2.5 beats/min compared to the use of sibutramine alone. Also, a clinically insignificant increase in the QT (by 9.5 ms). Rifampicin, macrolides, phenytoin, carbamazepine, phenobarbital and dexamethasone induce the CYP3A4 enzyme and may accelerate the metabolism of sibutramine. Concomitant use of drugs that increase serotonin levels in the blood can lead to serious interactions. The so-called serotonin syndrome can develop in isolated cases with the simultaneous use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors with certain drugs for the treatment of migraine (sumatriptan, dihydroergotamine) or with certain opioids (pentazocine, pephidine, fentanyl, dextromethorphan), or in the case of the use of two reuptake inhibitors serotonin at the same time. Since sibutramine blocks the reuptake of serotonin, it should not be prescribed with drugs of similar action, as well as with drugs that increase the level of serotonin in the blood plasma. Drug interactions with simultaneous use of Lindaxa with drugs that increase blood pressure and heart rate have not been sufficiently studied. A similar conclusion can be drawn regarding cough suppressants, cold and allergy medications, and some decongestants. Therefore, in cases of simultaneous administration of these drugs, caution should be exercised. The drug does not affect the effectiveness of oral contraceptives. With a one-time simultaneous use of sibutramine and alcohol, no increase in the negative effect of the latter was noted. However, alcohol consumption is absolutely not consistent with the dietary measures recommended when taking Lindaxa. If the patient is taking MAO inhibitors, 14 days should pass between the start of treatment with Lindaxa and the last day of taking drugs from this group and vice versa.
Contraindications
The drug should not be used in the presence of the following diseases: organic causes of obesity, serious nutritional disorders, mental illness, Gilles de la Tourette syndrome .
The drug should not be used during simultaneous treatment with MAO inhibitors or when they are used for two weeks before starting Meridia , taking serotonin reuptake inhibitors, sleeping pills, drugs that contain tryptophan , and other drugs for weight loss with central action.
This drug is contraindicated for diseases of the cardiovascular system, pheochromocytoma , uncontrolled arterial hypertension , thyrotoxicosis , severe disorders of the liver, kidneys, benign prostatic hyperplasia , and angle-closure glaucoma .
The drug should not be used during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
The drug should not be prescribed to children, adolescents, people over 65 years of age, those who have drug, alcohol, drug dependence, or high sensitivity to sibutramine .
Medicines are prescribed with caution for a history arrhythmias , cholelithiasis , chronic heart failure, arterial hypertension , neurological disorders, mild to moderate disorders of the liver, kidneys, and a history of motor and verbal tics.
Analogues and substitutes
We all know that when one pharmacological drug leaves the market, less than a month later its analogue appears, differing from the original only in name. The same thing happened with the weight loss product in question.
Which is better, Lindaxa or Reduxin? Lindaxa or Meridia? As soon as the first supply disruptions appeared, users literally flooded forums and websites dedicated to the fight against obesity with similar questions. And, it should be noted, the answer was found quite quickly. As of July 2017, there are 5 medications that can act as a full-fledged analogue of Lindaxa:
- "Meridia" - capsules from the German company, discontinued.
- "Reduxin" is a drug produced domestically.
- “Goldline” is a weight loss product manufactured by the Indian group of laboratories RANBAXY.
- “Slimia” are capsules produced under the brand name of the Indian company TORRENT PHARMACEUTICALS.
Due to the presence of sibutramine in the composition, all of them are sold strictly according to a prescription. Therefore, only people with obvious obesity will be able to purchase them legally.
Of course, you can try to replace Lindax with, say, dietary supplements or herbal preparations. However, do not forget that, unlike the listed drugs, nutritional supplements do not belong to the category of medicines. Therefore, it is impossible to predict the consequences of their use by a specific person. Therefore, if you do not want to pay exorbitant prices later to eliminate the consequences of self-medication, you should entrust the selection to a specialist.
Side effects
Side effects during therapy may occur in the first three to four weeks of using the drug. Over time, their intensity and frequency become less pronounced.
insomnia (often), dizziness, headaches, paresthesia , anxiety, and changes in taste (sometimes) may occur
The work of the cardiovascular system manifests itself as tachycardia , increased blood pressure, and vasodilation (sometimes).
In the digestive system, dry mouth, decreased appetite, and constipation (often) may occur; of hemorrhoids may also sometimes occur .
High sweating may occur as a side effect.
Isolated cases of dysmenorrhea , edema, flu-like syndrome, back and abdominal pain, skin itching, increased appetite, thirst, depression , drowsiness, rhinitis, anxiety, irritability, acute interstitial nephritis, bleeding , Henoch-Schönlein purpura , convulsions have also been described . thrombocytopenia .
Lindaxa overdose, symptoms and treatment
There is only limited data on sibutramine overdose. Specific symptoms of overdose are unknown, but the possibility of more pronounced side effects must be taken into account. There is no specific treatment for overdose, and a specific antidote is unknown. General measures are indicated: ensuring airway patency, monitoring the state of the cardiovascular system, and, if necessary, providing supportive, symptomatic therapy. Timely gastric lavage and the use of activated charcoal can reduce the absorption of sibutramine. In patients with high blood pressure and tachycardia, β-adrenergic receptor blockers are indicated.
Lindaxa, instructions for use (Method and dosage)
The dose of the drug must be determined by a specialist on an individual basis. The drug is taken in the morning; food intake does not matter. The initial dose should be 10 mg.
If no effect is observed, that is, the patient loses less than 2 kg in four weeks, then the dose, if the drug is well tolerated, can be increased to 15 mg per day. If there is no effective effect, treatment should not be continued.
According to the instructions, there is no need to continue therapy after three months of taking the drug for those patients who were unable to reduce weight during this time by 5% of the initial level.
You should also not practice further treatment if, after losing weight during treatment with this drug, the patient gains more than 3 kg. The duration of taking Lindax cannot last more than two years, because there is no information on the safety of taking the drug for a longer period of time.
Chemical composition and principle of action
The main active substance of Lindaxy is sibutramine, a drug that provides the body with a feeling of fullness even with low food consumption. In addition to it, the composition also includes:
- Gelatin, from which capsule shells are made.
- Dyes (quinoline, sunset, black ink 1012, etc.).
- Colloidal silicon dioxide.
- Microcrystalline cellulose.
- Lactose monohydrate.
- Magnesium stearate.
Thanks to this composition, the drug significantly slows down the consumption of serotonin (“the hormone of happiness”) in the body and equalizes its levels with norepinephrine. This, in turn, helps you feel full even with small meals.
As a result, the amount of food consumed by a person is reduced by about 20-25%, and he himself more easily switches to a more correct diet. At the same time, the negative phenomena characteristic of a change in diet (such as stress, increased irritability, loss of strength) are absent here.
Special conditions
The drug is used in exceptional cases when all other attempts to reduce body weight have been ineffective. The medicine is used only under the supervision of a medical specialist.
When using the product, monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate is required.
The medication is prescribed with caution to people with epilepsy, liver, and kidney failure.
Can affect car control, speed of physical and mental reactions.
Indications for use of Lindaxa
Lindaxa is indicated as an additional therapy as part of a comprehensive program to reduce excess body weight:
- in patients with nutritional obesity with a body mass index (BMI) ≥30 kg/m2;
- in patients with nutritional obesity with a BMI ≥27 kg/m2, in the presence of other risk factors due to excess body weight, such as type II diabetes mellitus or dyslipoproteinemia.
The drug can be prescribed only to those patients in whom the standard non-drug weight loss regimen was ineffective (in whom, over the course of 3 months, it was not possible to reduce body weight by more than 5% and consolidate the achieved result).
Lindaxa diet pills, reviews
Opinions about the effect of this remedy vary radically. Reviews from people losing weight about Lindax can be either very enthusiastic, since the drug helps get rid of extra pounds, or negative, because the medication does not affect patients in any way.
However, do not forget that Lindaxa 10 or Lindaxa 15 are serious drugs that should not be used recklessly. These medications are used only as part of complex therapy aimed at reducing a person’s weight, and will only help in this case. You should also take these tablets only after consulting your doctor.
It is worth remembering about the large number of side effects of Lindaxa.
general information
Lindaxa is an anorexigenic anti-obesity tablet. They were sold in packs of 30 and 90 capsules and marked with the numbers “10” and “15” depending on the content of sibutramine (10 and 15 mg, respectively).
The production and release of the drug was carried out by the Czech pharmacological company Zentiva. To date, this product has been discontinued and is not officially sold in Russia.
Lindaxa price, where to buy
In Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Samara and other Russian cities, tablets cannot currently be found on the open market. It is also impossible to buy medicine in Ukraine either via the Internet in online pharmacies or in regular pharmacies.
Thus, it is not possible to find out at what price to buy Lindaxa in an online store or pharmacy at home.
Also, we do not recommend buying this product on dubious sites offering the medication, most likely this is a scam.
“Beware of scammers”: don’t be fooled
Today, the production of Lindaxa has been completely stopped. However, this does not stop people, and many are still looking for places where they could purchase it. Demand, as we know, gives rise to supply, only in our case it is fraudulent. And it’s good if dishonest sellers simply disappear. But there are also those who actually send the buyer some pills.
Remember! The drug was discontinued more than 3 years ago. Its shelf life is 2 years. This means that if you buy Lindaxa from someone today, you will either get an expired product or a fake, which will only harm your body. If you think that you really can’t do without pills, it would be much safer to use similar drugs. But only with the approval of a doctor and only strictly adhering to the prescribed course!
A few words about self-medication
As already mentioned, all analogues related to medicines are sold exclusively by prescription. Unfortunately, this restriction only works in words, because... There are only more unscrupulous doctors and pharmacists every year. As a result, a person begins to take the drug, even without clear prerequisites for this. And such self-medication can end:
- Overdose with all the ensuing consequences (even fatal).
- Lack of positive results and accelerated weight gain (since you will not have a clear course of use).
- Exacerbation of chronic diseases and the emergence of new ones (after all, only a doctor can reliably determine whether you have an individual intolerance to individual components, and whether the chosen drug can be combined with other medications you are taking).
- A loss of money, since most drugs sold without a prescription are not original medicines, but counterfeits, which have zero benefit to the body.
As you can see, the risks are indeed serious. Therefore, before you look for substitutes on the open market or beg your doctor to write you an unnecessary prescription, think about whether the game is worth the candle?
