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Double Hit: Lose Weight and Quit Smoking at the Same Time

For many people the biggest problem in quitting smoking is the weight gain that accompanies it. And to a somewhat smaller extent, some people trying to cut down on their weight take up smoking. It all has to do with conditioned response but what would happen if you got a pill that not only helped you quit smoking but also keep your weight down?

That's the very thing that a team of French scientists think they've stumbled upon.

The new pill in the final stages of testing and it appears to show promise according to scientists who unveiled it at a medical conference.

The drug, which could be available in a year or two, works by an entirely new approach — by blocking the same primeval circuitry in the brain that gives pot-smokers the munchies.

The development could offer a well-timed one-two punch against Americans' gravest health concerns. Smoking is the country's top killer and is rapidly being overtaken by obesity and inactivity. The two problems combined kill more than 800,000 Americans a year. A similar pattern is occurring worldwide, even in developing countries.

Doctors who heard data on the new pill said that while better living habits should still be the foundation of good health, a new pill could be an important boost for those who cannot accomplish it through willpower alone.

"We tell people to diet and exercise, and that advice doesn't seem to be very effective," said Dr. Raymond Gibbons of the Mayo Clinic, who called the latest results "very provocative."

Two reports on the drug, called rimonabant, were released in New Orleans at a meeting of the American College of Cardiology. The research was financed by the drug's developer, the French firm Sanofi-Synthelabo, which plans to seek U.S. approval to sell it under the brand Acomplia after more studies are finished next year.

One study found the drug helped people drop 20 pounds in a year, while the other concluded it doubles smokers' success at quitting, at least in the short run. Doctors said the drug is likely to be marketed both for dieting and smoking cessation, but it is likely to be especially appealing to people beset by both problems.

"We think this might be the ideal compound for people who are overweight and smoke," said Dr. Robert Anthenelli of the University of Cincinnati, who directed the smoking study.

Doctors say the drug is also noteworthy because it takes a fresh approach to helping people overcome their yen for food and tobacco. It is the first of a class of medicines that block the so-called endocannabinoid system.