Weight loss that makes people hungrier

A new study found that people who lost weight using a diabetes drug became increasingly hungrier.

The researchers said the study provides the first measurement for how strongly appetite counters weight loss as part of a body’s feedback control system that regulates weight. The national Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases led the research with the drug canagliflozin – which is commonly used to treat diabetes in the brand name Invokana.

The yearlong study used placebo pills for 89 people and Invokana for 153 people. The Invokana patients consumed about 50 calories more per day for every pound lost than they ate before the study. The increased calories led to a weight loss plateau after about six months.

The researchers found no long-term calorie intake changes in the 89 people who got placebo pills.

Those placebo patients lost an average of eight pounds over the course of the study.

The researchers concluded “persistent effort is required to avoid weight regain.”

This story was originally published October 17, 2016 at 7:30 AM with the headline "Weight loss that makes people hungrier."