Title says it all. Some antidepressants are more well known for weight gain, some aren’t. What is it about certain formulas and what happens in the body? Do you just get in a happy bubble and stop caring? Or is it more scientific?
In: Biology
There’s not really an ELI5 but you might think of these drug molecules more like big keyrings full of multiple keys at receptor sites rather than ONLY the keys for doors we want to unlock (like the ones making you depressed by staying locked). Some drug molecules float over and unlock the doors we want (sad mood door, low energy door, etc), and others float over and have unintended effects by unlocking other doors (sleepy door, dry mouth door, constipation door, increased appetite door, blood sugar regulation door, etc). The drugs with the most keys on the molecule open the most different types of doors and sometimes that’s good; in fact, some of the most powerful psychiatric drugs are very “dirty” in how they work on so many different types of receptors (doors). Also, even beyond keys and doors, relieving depression may make you more likely to enjoy pleasurable activity, such as eating, so you will tend to eat more, and gain weight simply because of that.
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