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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Ways To Gain Weight While Having Depression And Suicidal Thoughts

I have a 16 year old son that is not eating and is losing weight. He is in a Children s home due to dealing with depression and suicidal thoughts. I can t remember what the meds he is on at the moment but he is about 6ft tall and is down to 128 pounds. They are also giving him a multivitamin. I am at wits end as what to do to help him get his appetite back to where it should be. What can I do?
posted on Fri, 14 Jul 2017
Twitter Fri, 4 Aug 2017 Answered on
Twitter Mon, 7 Aug 2017 Last reviewed on
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hello,
Antidepressants are drugs used to treat depression. There are different classes, and thus every class has a different effects on appetite.
SNRIs, like Cymbalta and Effexor, are reported to have an increase in appetite and weight gain in 26.9% of patients.
Other drugs like SSRIs are good antidepressants but they lower appetite. Tricyclics and MAOi have similar effect with SNRIs, but they are less effective in treating depression and have other side effects.
So, after asking your son's doctor, I would suggest to switch to a SNRI.

I hope I have answered your question clearly.
Best wishes and health to your son,
Manoku Eni, M.D.
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Suggest Ways To Gain Weight While Having Depression And Suicidal Thoughts

Hello, Antidepressants are drugs used to treat depression. There are different classes, and thus every class has a different effects on appetite. SNRIs, like Cymbalta and Effexor, are reported to have an increase in appetite and weight gain in 26.9% of patients. Other drugs like SSRIs are good antidepressants but they lower appetite. Tricyclics and MAOi have similar effect with SNRIs, but they are less effective in treating depression and have other side effects. So, after asking your son s doctor, I would suggest to switch to a SNRI. I hope I have answered your question clearly. Best wishes and health to your son, Manoku Eni, M.D.