Weight Gain From Antidepressants: Natural Ways That May Help You Avoid the Average 5 Pound Weight Gain by Jacob Teitelbaum

Depressing news about antidepressants: Standard meds prescribed for depression make you gain weight. A recent multicenter study led by the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute in Barcelona, Spain, and published in Frontiers of Psychiatry (Dec. 23, 2024), found that long-term use of antidepressants was associated with weight gain – even up to more than 5 percent of body weight for a quarter of patients studied. Earlier research from the United Kingdom, Finland and Canada found similar results. (Spain, Sweden and Portugal have the highest consumption of antidepressants in the world.)

Depression affects 280 million people globally, impacting women twice as often as men. These illnesses are also more prevalent among women than men and are often accompanied by depression.

Inflammation and associated immune dysfunctions are key components of both depression and weight gain. Immune dysfunction triggering inflammation affects women about three times as often as men.

The Barcelona study found that those who used antidepressants at all during a six-year observation period showed an average 2 percent increase in body weight. Also, those who used antidepressants long-term were twice as likely to develop obesity. This supports research seen in other studies. Young women were especially prone to the weight gain from antidepressants.

While effective treatment of depression is critical, SSRI antidepressants are often ineffective. However, select natural options have been found to be as or more effective than standard medications. These herbal alternatives cause "side benefits" instead of side effects.

A meta-analysis of 60 studies showed that curcumin supplementation was associated with a .83 kg average weight loss (1.8 pounds). Another meta-analysis showed curcumin to be highly effective for numerous inflammatory conditions.

Prescribing natural options such as highly absorbed curcumin or saffron can be more effective than antidepressants but leave you weighing an average of 5 pounds less than the medications. 5-HTP, which may help mood, is additionally associated with decreased appetite and weight loss.

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