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Botox injections do not help in weight loss, says a team of researchers from Mayo Clinic. Study authors add that people who wish to lose weight must try and lose weight using other treatments and not rely on these injections. 

Botox is a drug made from a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum, according to Medline Plus. The drug is used in small doses to temporarily remove facial wrinkles, underarm sweating, correct misaligned eyes, etc. 

Botulinum toxin A (BTA) injections to the stomach are supposed to aid in weight loss by increasing the time that the ingested food takes to move through the digestive system, thus making a person feel full for longer and increasing chances of losing weight.

For the present study, researchers assessed the role of Botox in helping obese people lose weight. The study included 60 people who were obese. Participants were randomly assigned to either get an injection of Botox or a dummy chemical (placebo). Study results showed that although Botox slowed down the movement of food through the stomach, it didn't aid in weight loss. 

"On the basis of our findings, I would not recommend gastric Botox injections to people who want to lose weight. There are some risks with this treatment and we found that there was no benefit in terms of body weight loss," said Mark Topazian, lead author of the study and professor of medicine in the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN.

Previous studies had demonstrated the efficacy of Botox in helping people lose weight. Researchers conducting the present study said that they accounted for all variables in the test, including the placebo effect, and found that Botox wasn't an effective weight-loss treatment.

"Unless future studies show different results I'd advise patients to seek other means of achieving weight loss," said Dr. Topazian in a news release.

The study is published in the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.