>>> well, for the first time in over a decade, the fda has approved a new diet drug . it's meant to help people who are obese and suffering from additional health problems related to their weight, but there are critics who are questioning whether this new pill it really safe. our report tonight from our chief science correspondent robert bazell .
>> the drug provided only modest weight lost for most volunteers. the fda decided the benefit was worth putting it on the market despite some concerns about its safety. many weight loss doctors agreed.
>> reporter: i think it's going to make it a little easier to have a tool for chronic weight loss management for those individuals that are obese, struggling to lose weight with diet and exercise alone.
>> clinical trials, participants who took the drug lost an average of 3% more than those on placebo after one year. for a 220 pound man, for instance, that would ab drop to 214 pounds. just over a fifth of those in the study shed at least 10% of their body weight . the reason the fda has taken 13 years to approve a new diet drug , it was forced to pull the popular appetite suppressant fen-phen in 1997 because it caused severe heart valve problems. this latest drug caused heart problems in animals but the company said it did not see them in human trials. some consumer advocates say the fda is making a big mistake .
>> the idea of having a diet drug that's just going to press the magic bullet called hunger and not affect the rest of the body is delusional. the history of diet drugs is a history of one drug after another being approved, causing damage to the heart, causing strokes and heart attacks and being taken off the market.
>> the fda ordered that the manufacturer continue studies to look for possible dangerous side effects . robert bazell , nbc news, new york.
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