I have been taking Alli for about 6 months now.  I also take Tricor for cholesterol.  I just had my annual blood work done and was shocked at my cholesterol levels and my doctor was as well.  We were both expecting my previous level of 209 to drop because of the huge changes I've made to my diet.  However, my level actually jumped to 259!  My doctor immediately told me to stop taking the Alli because she is afraid that the pill my have something to do with the jump.  Is this possible?  I told her that I did not want to stop taking Alli because it has helped me so much (30 lbs. in 6 months).  She of course insists that it's the change in my diet that has caused the weight loss.  What are your thoughts on this?

Thank you,

Tami Gould 

Clinical studies with orlistat, the active ingredient in alli, have shown improvement with cardiovascular risk factors such as a decrease in blood pressure and blood lipid levels. 

With weight loss alone you would expect to see the numbers drop.  Was the test a fasting one?  Were the other lipid levels off also?

For product-related questions or to report the occurrence of treatment effects and/or any adverse events related to alli, you may call our product customer service line at 1-800-671-2554 (M-F 9am - 4:30pm ET).

Sophia De Monte RPh

 Thanks for getting back to me.

The test was a fasting test and she said that my bad cholesterol went up as well.  Everything else looked fine.  What you are saying about Alli helping the levels makes perfect sense.  That's why I'm so confused.  I'm still waiting to hear back from my doctor as far as whether she wants me to stop the Alli.  No matter what she says, I plan on continuing and I'll tell her to retest me in a few months to see where the levels are.  In the meantime, I'm going to try to eat more cholesterol lowering foods to help.