The number of obesity drugs dispensed on prescription has increased beyond the one million mark for the first time ever in England, new figures show.

According to statistics released by the NHS Information Centre, GP practices issued 1.06 prescription items for obesity in 2006.

This figure was significantly higher than the 127,000 million items dispensed in 1999.

Orlistat (Xenical) and sibutramine (Reductil) were the most commonly prescribed obesity drug treatments.

Commenting on the figures, Dr Jim Kennedy, prescribing spokesman for the Royal College of GPs, linked the rise in prescriptions to the fact that the condition is now being taken more seriously.

"Government, patients and doctors are all more aware of the risks and therefore more willing to discuss obesity," he told the BBC.

"This means there is more of a willingness to consider treatment options."

The number of adults classified as being obese has risen by 50 per cent over the past decade, according to government figures.

Children are also more overweight than ever, with one in six children aged two to 15-years-old classed as obese, up from one in ten a decade ago.

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