Thincal general information
What is Thincal used for?
Your body weight is defined by many factors, and this includes your diet, height, ethnicity, and certain genetic factors. If your weight exceeds a healthy weight for your height, then you may need to consider losing some weight or risk becoming obese. Obesity is a medical term that describes the condition of carrying excess body weight that exposes you to a range of health problems and also affects your quality of life. Thincal capsules 120mg are used to help adults who are significantly obese to lose weight, maintain a healthy body weight, and prevent weight regain.
Lipid metabolism
Calorie-containing foods in your diet include carbohydrates and fats. These foods are digested in the intestines into smaller molecules that can be more easily absorbed into the blood and transported around the body to be used for energy. Carbohydrates are broken down into sugars, and fats are converted to fatty acids and glycerol.
Triglycerides are a type of fat found in the blood. If you consume more energy-containing foods (calories/kilojoules) than your body immediately needs, free fatty acids and glycerol are converted back into triglycerides. These fats are stored in adipose tissue, which is comprised of adipocytes or fat cells. This process is called lipogenesis.
If your body needs a source of energy between meals, for example, if you have not eaten for some hours or if you have been exercising strenuously, triglycerides are released from these fat stores and broken down again into free fatty acids. This process is called lipolysis, which is mediated by lipase enzymes and regulated by certain hormones, including adrenaline and glucagon. If you continue to consume more calories/kilojoules than your body can use, fat stores increase. Fat accumulation in adipose tissue leads to increased body weight and, ultimately, to obesity.
Obesity and BMI
Obesity is the result of continually gaining body weight due to consuming excess high energy foods (calories/kilojoules), such as fats and sugars. These calories/kilojoules are stored as fat in adipose tissue, and the more you consume, the more your fat stores increase. Obesity is also usually combined with a lack of exercise to use up the energy consumed.
The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measure that determines whether you are within a healthy body weight range for your height and ethnicity; or you are underweight, overweight, or obese.
BMI is calculated by dividing your weight in kilograms (or pounds) by your height in metres (or inches) squared (kg/m2 or pounds/in2).
Obesity is defined as anyone with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more.
Obesity and health risks
Obesity is a condition that carries a serious health risk. It can lead to serious illness, including heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, and blocked arteries.
Metabolic syndrome is a grouping of health conditions often associated with obesity that are indicators of more serious health problems. These include too much fat around the waist, high blood pressure, and blood levels of triglycerides, cholesterol, and blood sugar.
Insulin resistance is another health risk associated with obesity. Insulin regulates the amount of sugar in your blood by inhibiting the production of glucose by the liver and promoting the uptake of glucose for energy in tissues like muscle. Insulin also inhibits lipolysis and the release of free fatty acids from fats cells to conserve energy sources until needed. If your body has excess triglycerides stored in adipose tissue, this can tip the finely tuned balance between energy use and energy conservation, which can cause insulin resistance. This increases the risk of developing type-2 diabetes.
Thincal capsules 120mg help reduce the risk of obesity-related diseases by reducing cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar, as a long-term treatment for obesity management. Thincal capsules 120mg should be used in combination with a low-fat diet that is calorie-controlled and a healthy lifestyle with lots of exercise.
How does Thincal work?
Thincal capsules 120mg contain orlistat, a specific and reversible long-acting inhibitor of gastrointestinal lipase that is used to treat obesity and manage weight control in adults. Dietary fat consists mainly of large triglycerides, which cannot be absorbed into the blood. Triglycerides are hydrolysed (broken down) by an enzyme called gastrointestinal lipase in the stomach and small intestines. The result is that smaller free fatty acids and monoglycerides can then be absorbed in the small intestine.
Orlistat in Thincal capsules 120mg inhibits the action of the enzyme gastrointestinal lipase, which results in up to 30% undigested triglycerides passing through the gastrointestinal system without being absorbed. This unabsorbed fat is excreted in the faeces. This means that dietary fat cannot be used as a source of calories. Therefore, less dietary fat is available to be used as energy by the body. Instead, stores of body fat in adipose tissue will preferentially be used first, and fewer excess calories derived from fat in the diet will be stored as body fat.
Unlike appetite suppressants, orlistat Thincal capsules 120mg is not absorbed into the blood. Instead, it acts locally by binding to gastrointestinal lipase in your stomach and small intestines.
Thincal capsules 120mg are fast-acting, and the effects can be seen within 24-48 hours, based on excreted fat content in the faeces. If you stop taking Thincal, you will return to absorbing fat from the diet again, and this will reduce your weight loss.
What does Thincal contain?
Thincal capsules 120mg contain the active ingredient the active ingredient orlistat, a gastrointestinal lipase inhibitor that blocks the break down and absorption of fat in the diet and is used to treat obesity and manage weight control in adults.
What are the side effects of Thincal?
Most medications have some side effects, but they are not experienced by everyone. Some side effects are commonly experienced when taking Thincal capsules 120mg, but others are not so common, and you should discuss any problems or concerns with your primary care physician.
Common side effects when taking Thincal include gastrointestinal problems that are generally mild and transient including increased flatulence (wind), abdominal pain, urgent need to defaecate and need to defaecate more often, oily, fatty, soft or liquid stools, oily discharge from anus and rectal pain or discomfort; headache, respiratory infection, influenza, gum disorders, low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia), fatigue, anxiety, menstrual disorders.
When should Thincal not be used?
Have a talk with your primary healthcare physician before taking Thincal capsules 120mg so that you have a full understanding of what this medicine is for and how to use it. There are some reasons for not taking a medication; these are called contraindications, and for Thincal you should consider the following before taking Thincal:
- Have you ever had an unusual reaction or an allergy when taking Thincal?
- Are you pregnant or breastfeeding?
- Do you have chronic malabsorption syndrome (problems absorbing essential nutrients)?
- Do you have cholestasis (blockage in the bile duct)?
What medications interact with Thincal?
Some medicines interact with Thincal capsules 120mg and may affect the way it works, or are affected by Thincal or increase side effects; you should discuss possible interactions with your primary care physician. These may include the immunosuppressant cyclosporin, the anticoagulant warfarin, the antiarrhythmic amiodarone, the antidiabetic acarbose.
If you are you taking vitamin supplements containing fat soluble vitamins like vitamins D or E, or betacarotene, you should take them least 2 hours after you have taken Thincal, or at bedtime, as Thincal will affect the absorption of these vitamins.
If other medications may interact with Thincal, your doctor will discuss these with you.
How should Thincal be taken and for how long?
You should take your Thincal capsules 120mg swallowed whole with a glass of water and with food, immediately before, during or up to one hour after a meal. You should take your Thincal capsules three times a day with each meal, depending on your doctor’s recommendation.
Each meal should be low in calories, well-balanced and rich in fruit and vegetables and contain an average of 30% calories from fat, with the daily intake of fat, carbohydrate and protein distributed over three main meals. Avoid eating food high in fat between meals, such as biscuits, chocolate or savoury snacks. If you miss a meal or the meal contains no fat, that dose of Thincal capsules 120mg should be missed.
You should continue to take your Thincal capsules 120mg for as long as recommended by your doctor, which may be for several months or longer, depending on how much weight you need to lose.
Missed dose of Thincal
If you miss a dose of Thincal capsules 120mg take it as soon as you remember, unless it is time to take the next dose, then skip the missed dose. Do not take a double dose.
How should Thincal be stored?
You should store your Thincal capsules 120mg below 25°C in a cool dry place.