Louis Aronne, an AOA advisory board member and NAASO's president in 2005, coauthored an article in CORE's premier issue of Obesity Management in which he examined the use of drugs to treat obesity. Along with discussing obesity drugs in the pipeline and the "off-label" use of several other drugs, Aronne described in detail the use of sibutramine, Orlistat, and phentermine.
It was not disclosed that Aronne was a principal investigator for Orlistat and that he has received financial support from the pill's maker. In December 2004, when The Wall Street Journal reported that there were significant problems with the CDC's exaggerated conclusion that excess weight causes 400,000 deaths per year, Aronne told the paper: "I would argue, gee, maybe they're underestimating it."
