I have often thought that once an idea is documented, it often comes to life. So it is that this SMH article demonstrates how may times this phenomona has, or has not, occured:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/wheres-my-scifi-future/2007/05/02/1177788228142.html

This caught my eye though:

"Under the far-reaching metabolic-dominance program, the US military is soliciting proposals for a pill that will allow soldiers to operate at peak performance during prolonged periods of starvation"

It sounds like the US military haven't been looking hard enough. Haven't they heard of E? Try the Red Smiley...