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Expert Q&A

Why weight gain can happen with antidepressants

Asked by Amy Stiffler, Pennsylvania

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Why do antidepressants cause weight gain?

Expert Bio Picture

Mental Health Expert Dr. Charles Raison Psychiatrist,
Emory University Medical School

Expert answer

You might be surprised to know that the answer to this very straightforward question is not a settled issue, which is a fancy way of saying we're not entirely sure. One thing is clear: Different antidepressants probably cause weight gain through different mechanisms.

Let's start with something that all antidepressants share, which is the fact that they make approximately 60 to 80 percent of people who take them feel better. Remember that weight loss is one of the classic depressive symptoms. So it is likely that at least some of the weight gain that occurs on antidepressants is simply a reflection of the fact that people are feeling better and therefore eating more.

Antidepressants appear to work by interacting with various chemical receptors in the brain. Two of these receptors are especially associated with a proclivity toward weight gain when blocked. These are the muscarinic acetylcholine receptor and the histamine receptors. Antidepressants that block these receptors have more weight gain associated with them than do antidepressants that avoid them. Most of the older antidepressants such as the tricyclics (Elavil is probably the best known of these) blocked these receptors and reliably made people gain weight. Of the newer selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs for short), paroxetine (brand name Paxil) has more anticholinergic activity and so causes more weight gain. Another relatively new antidepressant, mirtazapine (brand name Remeron), blocks the histamine receptor and is associated with significant weight gain.

Most people being treated for depression are on either one of the SSRIs or agents that block both serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake (these are called SNRIs for short). For reasons no one really understands, the SSRIs cause weight loss over the first weeks to months of treatment but then gradually cause slight weight gain. On average, people who have been on an SSRI for a year or more gain about 5 pounds. SNRIs probably cause less of this long term weight gain. Another newer antidepressant, bupropion (brand name Wellbutrin), is probably the most weight neutral of all the antidepressants available in the U.S.

Finally, another thing we don't really understand yet is why people have such remarkably different weight responses to antidepressants. The same drug can make some people balloon up and other people lose weight. There is probably a genetic story behind these differences, but it has yet to be told.

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