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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 5 of 5. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by becksA on December 5, 2006, at 19:25:18
I've wondered this for a long time. When you hear about or experience medicines causing weight gain, is it because of a chemical imbalance causing change in your metabolism....or do the meds simply make you more hungry, causing your to eat more than you normally would?
Thanks
Posted by yxibow on December 6, 2006, at 0:58:32
In reply to Truth to Med Side Effect of Weight Gain, posted by becksA on December 5, 2006, at 19:25:18
> I've wondered this for a long time. When you hear about or experience medicines causing weight gain, is it because of a chemical imbalance causing change in your metabolism....or do the meds simply make you more hungry, causing your to eat more than you normally would?
>
> ThanksThe answer is yes. Its a bit of both in my opinion -- agents such as Seroquel and Zyprexa can change lipid profiles in the body which increase cholesterol.
On the other hand, vigorous amounts of excercise will reduce this cholesterol imbalance (I know, I dropped it when I dropped weight.)
Remeron I'm not sure of -- it certainly causes ravenous hunger, but does it actually change body chemistry if you locked your fridge ? That's a hard one to say, I think its somewhere in the middle again.
Basically, whether your metabolism is slowed down, or whether it causes you to sleep more, a weight gaining medication is not taken in a vacuum. We eat, as humans, as a part of our daily life, and artificial adjustments may have to be made to accommodate a new daily calorie limit created by medication X.
I'm sure there will be lots of stories and different theories about this -- its an oft discussed topic.
-- Jay
Posted by becksA on December 6, 2006, at 15:17:32
In reply to Re: Truth to Med Side Effect of Weight Gain » becksA, posted by yxibow on December 6, 2006, at 0:58:32
hmmm thanks some things to think about i guess! my "med x" is lithium....so far i THINK i have more hunger, but it's hard to say i only recently started it a couple weeks ago. my doc said there are also thyroid meds that can counteract this problem as well i guess?
thanks again
Posted by elanor roosevelt on December 6, 2006, at 20:34:26
In reply to Re: Truth to Med Side Effect of Weight Gain, posted by becksA on December 6, 2006, at 15:17:32
the worst for me was buspar (20 pounds)
it turned off the part of my brain that usually says
"okay i am full now"
other meds make me crave sweets later in the day
then once the weight is on it is so difficult to get it off even if i work out hard, which i do, 4 days a week
was on parnate for 4 months and lost 8 pounds
too bad it f**ked up my head
Posted by Maxime on December 8, 2006, at 22:13:19
In reply to Re: Truth to Med Side Effect of Weight Gain, posted by becksA on December 6, 2006, at 15:17:32
> hmmm thanks some things to think about i guess! my "med x" is lithium....so far i THINK i have more hunger, but it's hard to say i only recently started it a couple weeks ago. my doc said there are also thyroid meds that can counteract this problem as well i guess?
>
> thanks againWith Lithium it's usually water weight since lithium is a salt. But over time Lithium can kill off your thyroid and cause hypothyroidism and weight gain.
Some people gain weight on ADs because their depression lifts and they feel better and they start to eat normally again.
Maxime
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