A lot of people complain that taking antidepressants and/or antipsychotics makes them gain weight.
And yes, many of the drugs have been linked to weight gain (here’s a handy list of the ones that are most likely to put on the lbs).
But a new study from the Wharton Medical Clinic suggests people taking those drugs can lose weight just as easily as people who don’t take them.
Researchers put the participants on a lifestyle-based weight management program (i.e. diet and exercise), and found that overweight participants on antidepressants and/or antipsychotics lost a similar amount of weight as those who didn’t take them.
Especially women. There was no statistical difference in weight loss during the program between women on or off the drugs. For men, there was only a slightly statistically significant difference.
In other words, if you’re on an antidepressant or antipsychotic, it’s just about as easy for you to lose weight as it is for drug-less folks.
So what’s the significance of all this?
Well, as researchers say, people with mental health problems are much more likely to develop obesity.
That could be from the disease itself (for example, you’re less likely to exercise and perhaps more likely to comfort eat if you’re feeling depressed), or it could also be from the medications themselves, or both.
All this makes it tricky for people to figure out what to do.
After all, if depression makes you more likely to gain weight, theoretically, treating the depression with drugs should help with weight management.
But the drugs themselves can cause weight gain. So both the depression and the antidepressants can lead to weight gain.
That makes a lot of people abandon antidepressants.
But this study is important for those folks, because it suggests that you can lose weight just about as easily while taking antidepressants as off of them.
The upshot is that if you’re depression is a problem, you should probably treat that first, and understand that you can treat the weight gain later.
Maybe you’ll feel less depressed and start living a healthier lifestyle. And second, if your lbs jump, you can go on a weight management program and take off pounds just as easily.
One more thing — obesity is dangerous, yes.
But a new study found that if you’re lonely, you’re more likely to develop heart disease, have a stroke, and pick up immune system problems.
In fact, loneliness, researchers say, is just as bad for your health as obesity and smoking.
Your mental health is your physical health. You cannot divorce one from the other.
So if you’re worried about the weight gain from antidepressants, just remember that the depression is probably more dangerous than the weight gain. First things first.
As always, talk to your doctor.
Painting: Cakes, Wayne Thiebaud (1963) and sorry.
[h/t: Psych Central]
