Anti-Obesity Medications (AOMs)
Anti-obesity medications are doctor-prescribed medicines that help with weight loss when diet and exercise alone have not been enough.
Plain English
Patient-Friendly Explanation
Anti-obesity medications (AOMs) are prescription medicines that help people lose weight when diet and exercise alone have not been enough. They work in different ways — most reduce appetite or make you feel full sooner, and some also slow digestion or change how the body handles sugar. A doctor supervises their use because they must be matched to your health and monitored over time.
Medical
Clinical Definition
Anti-obesity medications are pharmacotherapies indicated for weight management in people with a BMI of 30 kg/m² or more, or 27 kg/m² or more with at least one weight-related comorbidity (using Asian-Pacific cutoffs of 27.5 and 23–27.4 in Singapore practice). They act through central appetite pathways (GLP-1 receptor agonism, MC4R agonism), pancreatic lipase inhibition, or combinations of these mechanisms. Meta-analyses report placebo-subtracted weight losses of roughly 5–15% at one year depending on the agent, together with improvements in cardiometabolic risk factors. Therapy is intended as an adjunct to lifestyle modification and requires regular review of efficacy, tolerability and safety.
Key Insight
Why It Matters
At Accord Medical, Dr Joseph Wang prescribes weight-loss medication only after a full medical assessment, and always together with diet and lifestyle support. This ensures the right medicine is chosen for the right patient — safely and sustainably.
Sources
Reviewed against standard medical references.
Medically reviewed by
Family Physician & Registered Acupuncturist, Accord Medical Clinic. MBBS (NUS), Graduate Diploma in Family Medicine (NUS), Graduate Diploma in Acupuncture (Singapore College of TCM).
Last reviewed: August 2026
This page is general health education, not medical advice. Whether any treatment is appropriate for you is a decision made in consultation after assessment.