Weight gain is a side effect of many medications these days, but some types of medications are more prone to putting you in your "fat jeans" than other medications. If you ever gain more than five pounds a month on any medications, make sure that nothing else in your life may be causing the weight gain, and then check with your doctor. Don't discontinue the drug just because of weight gain, but it is a side effect that should be discussed with your primary care physician at your next meeting
Instructions
1. Antihistamines and Sleep Aids
Over the counter sleep remedies, allergy medications, and some night time versions of pain medication have the same ingredient that can cause weight gain: diphenhydramine. Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine that blocks what is known as H1 histamines. It is known by the brand Benadryl here in the United States. It is also known as Nytol as a sleep remedy. This is added to some night time versions of pain medications such as Tylenol, too. Diphenhydramine makes you sleepy and when you are sleepy you are burning less calories, so it can make you gain more weight than if you were not taking the drug.
2. Headache Medicine
Prescription headache medication such as Depakote (also an epilepsy and bipolar drug) can have weight gain as a side effect. There is much speculation as to why Depakote causes weight gain, from the theory that it irritates stomach lining and therefore makes you want to eat more to combat that, to the theory that it may give you diabetes. Whatever the true reason, if you are on Depakote you may want to ask your doctor if some of the other newer headache remedies can give you the same results without the weight gain.
3. Steroids
Steroids are famous for that bloated look that patients get. Prednisone makes you invariably hungrier than you've ever felt in your life. People on steroids need to up their exercise level to combat the extra calories that you will consume on the drug.
4. Birth Control
Some birth control pills will add up to an additional five to ten pounds in nothing but water retention from the estrogen in the pills. Estrogen traps water in the body, and this will cause a slight weight gain in individuals. If you find yourself gaining weight on the pill, you can ask about the newer drugs like Yasmin or new minipills that have less estrogen in them.
Tags: weight gain, gain side, gain side effect, side effect, five pounds