A potential new treatment to help obese patients “feel full” has been hailed a success by researchers.

Scientists said a hormone found in the small intestine had given them a crucial breakthrough in developing drugs to tackle obesity.

Their latest study, published in the journal Diabetes, involved patients being given injections of oxyntomodulin - a naturally occurring digestive hormone.

The injections boost the body’s existing levels of oxyntomodulin, which is normally released from the small intestine as food is consumed, signalling to the brain that the body is full and has had enough to eat.

The researchers led by Professor Steve Bloom, of Imperial College London and Hammersmith Hospital, hoped that injections of the drug would help reduce body weight and calorific intake in those taking part in the study.

A total of 26 volunteers took part in the four-week trial, with 14 given oxyntomodulin jabs and a control group of 12 given saline injections. The injections were given three times a day.

The researchers found that after four weeks, the group taking oxyntomodulin reduced their weight by an average of 2.3kg - compared to 0.3kg in the control group.

They also found that the daily energy intake in the test group reduced - by an average 170 calories after the first injection and 250 calories at the trial’s end.