The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has conveyed its orders to the doctors across the continent to stop prescribing sibutramine and review its use in patients already taking it.

The country's most commonly prescribed anti-obesity drugs has faced a ban across Europe after it was accused of increasing patients' chances of suffering a heart attack or a stroke. In addition, pharmacists have also received orders, not to dispense the drug, which is marketed in the UK as Reductil.

Orlistat, a pill which prevents fat absorption, is much more widely used and is taken by hundreds of thousands of people each year is accused of altering chemical messages to the brain which control cravings for food.

The watchdog's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) issued its warnings after a study of 9,800 patients, citing that the hazards associated with sibutramine outweighed its minimal benefits.

EMA endorsed by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has advised its users not to get paranoid and should arrange to consult their family doctor seeking an alternative treatment.

Dr. June Raine, from the MHRA said, "Evidence suggests that there is an increased risk of non-fatal heart attacks and strokes with this medicine that outweigh the benefits of weight loss, which is modest and may not be sustained in the long term after stopping treatment".