If you are one of those people who are overweight and would love to blame something other than too much food or lack of exercise, this blog is for you.
According to the Harris County Hospital District’s Drug Information Center, weight gain or loss may not always be attributed to lifestyle. For some, it’s due to the medicines they’re taking.
Certain meds can cause significant weight changes. For example, weight-related side-effects are common in medicines taken by patients with diabetes, high-blood pressure and mental health conditions.
Those likely to experience weight increase include people taking steroids and women on birth control, while those taking antidepressants such as Prozac® and Wellbutrin® are likely to lose weight.
However, this does not mean you should immediately start making changes to your medication regimen. Drugs are weird. They do different things to different people and it’s often impossible to predict which people will have which side effects from which drugs.
“Because of the stigma of weight gain, patients may tend to stop taking their medicines or decrease their dosage without talking to their physician,” says Ryan Roux, PharmD, chief pharmacy officer, Harris County Hospital District. “Doing this is a bad thing. It can affect your health in a number of negative ways.”
Instead, it’s important that you tell your physician about any weight changes and then reassess the drugs or dosages taken. The more you can become actively involved in your treatment and be informed about long-term medication use, the better.
Not sure if the meds you’re taking could be to blame?
SRxA’s Word on Health brings you a list of some common medications and their weight side effects listed both by brand and generic name:
Diabetes
Weight promoting
- Actos® (pioglitazone)
- Amaryl® (glimepiride)
- Insulins
Weight loss or weight neutral
- Byetta® (exenatide)
- Januvia® (sitagliptin)
- Symlin® (pramlintide)
- Metformin
- Precose® (acarbose)
Hypertension
Weight promoting
- Lopressor ® (metoprolol)
- Tenormin® (atenolol)
- Inderal® (propranolol)
- Norvasc® (amlodipine)
- Clonidine
Antidepressants
Weight promoting
- Paxil® (paroxetine)
- Zoloft® (sertraline)
- Amitripyline
- Remeron® (mirtazapine)
Weight loss or weight neutral
- Wellbutrin® (bupropion)
- Prozac® (fluoxetine)
Antipsychotic
Weight promoting
- Clozaril® (clozapine)
- Zyprexa® (olanzapine)
- Risperdal® (risperidone
- Seroquel® (quetiapine)
- Lithium
- Valproic Acid
- Carbamazepine
Antiepileptic Drugs
Weight promoting
- Carbamazapine
- Neurontin® (gabapentin)
Weight loss or weight neutral
- Lamictal® (lamotrigine)
- Topamax® (topiramate)
- Zonegran® (zonisamide)
As always, we advise – for more information about the effects of medicines, consult your physician or pharmacist.
SRxA's Word on Health 