Utah State University researchers are hoping to pave the way for an efficient appetite-suppressant drug. The idea is for a diet drug to be ingested and, instead of the medication spreading throughout the entire body, the drug would be sent via small particles, targeting specific cells in the digestive system. This would mean better control of a person's desire for food intake, resulting in weight loss.

"Understanding the mechanisms that contribute to the control of fat intake is becoming increasingly important," said research team member Bhavik Shah, 24, of Logan. He is a doctoral student majoring in biology.

Utah has the 36th highest level of adult obesity in the nation at 20.8 percent, according to Trust for America's Health, a nonprofit, nonpartisan disease-prevention organization based in Washington, D.C.

Find more information about a new weight loss drug that the Utah State University researchers are working on at http://www.standard.net/standard.php/news/67052/?printable=story.