Weight gain is a side-effect that is common to many antidepressants, mood stabilizers and antipsychotics. As much as we know about the adverse effects that obesity can have on health, the more pressing need to get our moods under control takes precedence when a patient feels that they can't go on living. But what about after a patient's mood becomes stabilized? What can be done to prevent excess pounds from undermining health and self-image?
One obvious solution is to switch to a medication which causes less weight gain, but this may not work in every case. People are very individual in which medications will relieve their depressive symptoms and these medications may not provide an adequate solution.
According to Judith Wurthman, Ph.D. director of the Triad Weight Management Center at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass., carbohydrate control is a key component in weight control for those using psychotropic medications.
Dr. Wurthman says that patients who gain weight on these medications typically have an uncontrollable urge to eat starchy or sweet foods. She says that the answer is to consume carbohydrate-rich, protein-poor foods, which will increase brain levels of tryptophan and serotonin synthesis, in turn reducing the craving.
The regimen advocated by Dr. Wurthman's center involves a proprietary drink containing 40g simple and complex carbohydrates two to three times a day on an empty stomach. She further counsels her patients to have a high-carbohydrate, low-protein, low-fat meal in the evening, when cravings may be strongest. Out of the people who have completed a fourteen week program of carbohydrate drink, diet and exercise though her center, the average weight loss reported was 20 lbs.
Dr. Wurthman is also the author of "Managing Your Mind and Mood Through Food", which outlines an eating plan designed to aid readers with stress and mood management through dietary choices.
