Research
Hormonal
Phentermine is generally avoided in older adults due to risks of falls, anxiety exacerbation, and cardiovascular side effects, despite its efficacy in younger populations.
Phentermine is rarely recommended for older adults because it can cause dizziness (increasing fall risk), worsen anxiety, and strain the heart. It is generally avoided in this age group due to multiple comorbidities.
ModerateRefutesMEDIUM confidence
For older adults, we recommend prescribing phentermine with great caution, as this medication can cause dizziness and may lead to an increased risk of falls... In our practice, we generally avoid this medication for older adults, who may have a multitude of comorbidities.
Why this rating
Based on author recommendation and known side effects, not specific RCTs in older adults.
Source
Antiobesity Medications for Older Adults—the New, the Good, the Bad, and the Unknown
Anna Pendrey et al. · Obesity · 2025
DOI 10.1002/oby.70029
narrative_reviewCited 3×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Antiobesity medications (AOMs) improve cardiovascular outcomes, hypertension, and metabolic liver disease in older adults, but their use requires caution due to an increased risk of sarcopenia.Good
- Incretin medications (GLP-1 RAs and dual agonists) are the most effective class of AOMs for older adults, achieving 15-25% weight loss, but require careful titration to manage side effects.Good
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