Avoiding Weight Gain When on Antidepressants

Got the blues? That's common in many chronic health conditions. Most doctors will simply toss you a prescription for Prozac and call out "Next..." It may help, although more often it does not, and you'll probably gain weight. A new new study in Frontiers in Psychiatry shows  that even short courses of antidepressants result in an average three pound weight gain, while ongoing use can double your risk of becoming obese.

As with fibromyalgia, women are twice as likely as men to suffer depression. Why? Maybe because depression and  a wide array of immune and autoimmune conditions have immune dysfunction as a piece of the process. Immune dysfunction affects women about three times as often as men. Because of the metabolic changes it brings, people with fibromyalgia already gain an average of 32 pounds (which is often helped by following the S.H.I.N.E.® Protocol).

Adding insult to injury, you feel emotionally crippled, your doctor prescribes an antidepressant, and now you're gaining more weight despite not feeling better. But this is all avoidable...

Alternatives to Medications

Of course, effectively addressing mood is crucial. But sadly, SSRI antidepressants are often ineffective (SSRI stands for Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, which are antidepressants that work by increasing your levels of serotonin.) Meanwhile, many natural alternatives are as or more effective than medications. As a bonus, instead of side effects, these natural options often come with side benefits.

CuraMed®

My favorite is CuraMed® 750 mg twice a day. Research has shown its active ingredient, curcumin, to be significantly beneficial in improving mood while other research associates it with an average two pound weight loss. It also markedly decreases discomfort, inflammation, and many other problems. CuraMed has so many health benefits, I personally take one a day even though I feel fantastic.

In my practice, I was generally very comfortable recommending taking CuraMed even when a patient was on other medications (though notably I exercised caution when recommending it if they were on the blood thinner Coumadin).

Feeling down is multifactorial with many causes, including inflammation. Which is also a major contributor to weight gain, discomfort, and feeling down. CuraMed powerfully helps all of these. Give it six weeks to see the full effect.

5-HTP and Saffron

This is simply the tip of the iceberg on alternatives to medications that don't cause weight gain. Other nutrients such as 5-HTP, which may also help mood, have also been shown to be associated with decreased appetite and weight loss. If you're also on an antidepressant, you should limit the 5-HTP dose to 200-300 mg a day (and don’t use it all if you're on a very high dose antidepressant). If you're not taking antidepressants, doses of 600 mg a day will also help you sleep, in addition to helping mood and decreasing discomfort.

Saffron can also be very helpful at lifting mood, without causing weight gain. I recommend a brand called Saffron Lift, which is readily available online and in health food stores

The Energy Revitalization Drink Mix

Especially critical? Countless nutrients are important for being calm and happy as well as energized. These nutrients can be found in combination in the Fatigued to Fantastic™ Energy Revitalization Drink Mix multi nutrient powder. This is critical for mood, relief from discomfort, energy, and so much more. If you are not already on this, I strongly urge you  consider using it — even if you already feel great.

The bottom line? Natural compounds can be as or more effective than prescription mood elevators, while leaving you an average of five pounds lighter than being on an antidepressant — but with multiple side benefits, Including reduced discomfort.

Give these natural alternatives six to eight weeks to see the full effect.

PS. It is unwise to suddenly stop taking antidepressants as this can cause withdrawal symptoms. If you are going to discontinue taking them, work with your physician to slowly wean off of them.