Summary

Medications prescribed for mental health symptoms may be called psychotropic medications or psychiatric medications. All medications can cause side effects. Not everyone will develop side effects to the medications they are taking. Never stop taking medications without speaking with the prescriber of the medications. Ask for information about the medications you are taking in order to be informed about potential benefits and potential side effects.

Psychiatric Medications

Medications for mental health symptoms are commonly prescribed in the USA. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics, data from 2020 reveals that in the previous 12 months, 16.5% of adults in the USA had taken a psychiatric medication. The percentages were even higher in persons over the age of 45 years old.

Taking medications, including psychiatric medications, requires information about the medications. Let’s explore some of the information related to the use of psychiatric medications.

Actions of Psychiatric Medications

Psychiatric medications may also be called psychotropic or mental health medications. They are prescribed to address mental health symptoms. Psychotropic medications may not eradicate all mental health symptoms. The goal is to improve the mental health symptoms in order for the person taking the medications to function in life and to experience a reduction in distressing symptoms.

Like all medications, psychotropic medications have potential side effects. Not everyone will develop side effects. Some side effects are more common. Some side effects are concerning enough for the prescriber to discuss with the patient available interventions to eliminate or reduce the side effects.

Psychotropic medications can be life savers. Do not stop taking the medications prescribed to you without consulting with the person who prescribed the medications.

Impacts on Appetite, Energy Level, and Weight

It is ubiquitously recognized that some medications affect our appetite. Pertaining to psychiatric medications (medications prescribed to address psychiatric/mental health symptoms), some of these medications carry the burden of increasing appetite and leading to weight gain. The effect on appetite can be distinct from the weight gain, depending on the medication. Weight gain may occur as a result of the effect of these medications on insulin resistance and a host of other mechanisms of action. Psychotropic medication classes which can increase weight include, well, basically all of our psychotropic medications, though not all of them induce insulin resistance.

Thus, we say that psychotropic medications carry a metabolic burden.

To simplify, I am going to list possible steps on the road to metabolic burden (increased weight, increased cholesterol, and increased blood sugar).

The increased appetite can lead to weight gain due, in part, to the ingestion of high carbohydrate foods.
The weight gain can engender changes in blood glucose (sugar) and lipid (cholesterol types) levels.
Effects at the level of enzymes (proteins in our body involved in creating materials our cells and tissues and systems need) can cause our body to change the way it deals with the food we eat or the way it manages our blood glucose (sugar) level, our production of lipids (cholesterol types), and our adiposity (deposits of fatty materials in our body).
Some psychotropic medications can affect us at the level of our DNA by changing attached components (often methyl groups or acetyl groups) on our DNA, thereby telling our DNA to produce a protein (remember the enzyme term I mentioned) a bit differently. THIS DOES NOT CHANGE THE CODE IN OUR DNA. It just changes the way our DNA interprets the code.

If you are interested in the evolution of the science related to psychotropic medications and their metabolic effects, I am including links to a few articles which fascinate me. The articles are very technical. If you do not understand the articles, please consult with an expert who might just be your mental health professional, your medical provider, or your licensed dietitian nutritionist or registered dietitian nutritionist.

Non-metabolic Side Effects of Psychiatric Medications

Psychiatric medications like all medications have possible side effects, including side effects which are not metabolic in nature.

Common side effects of many medications are gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea and diarrhea. The reasons for gastrointestinal symptoms are varied. Medications in the antidepressant category of SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) can affect appetite and may elicit nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, related to serotonin receptors in the human gut. SSRIs may cause sleepiness and weight changes.

Antipsychotic agents in particular may cause involuntary movements (movements a person cannot control). Antidepressant agents and other medications may also cause people to have movement disorders.

There are many potential side effects of all medications, including psychotropic medications. Some psychotropic medication can lower blood pressure and others may increase blood pressure. Some psychotropic medications can increase the risk for seizures or affect memory or reduce itching or decrease appetite. The list of potential side effects of psychotropic medications cannot be included in this brief post.

Speak with the prescriber of your medications if you have any questions about the medications you are taking.

Takeaways: Psychiatric Medications and You

Medications prescribed for mental health symptoms can be life savers. Like all other medications, psychotropic medications may cause side effects. Side effects are not experienced by every person who takes any given medication. Never stop your medications without consulting the prescriber who ordered the medication (s) for you.

Be well. Be safe. Be informed. Be deliberate in your actions: do not stop taking medications without consulting the prescriber.

Disclaimer: The content of this post is not meant to substitute for a consultation with your health care provider.

Selective References:

Cardiometabolic Effects of Psychotropic Medications. Oluchi Abosi, Sneha Lopes, Samantha Schmitz, Jess G. Fiedorowicz. Jan 10 2018. Horm Mol Biol Clin Investig. https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/hmbci-2017-0065/html

Mental Health Treatment Among Adults: USA, 2020. CDC National Center for Health Statistics. October 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db419.htm#:~:text=Interview%20Survey%2C%202020.-,Summary,from%20a%20mental%20health%20professional.

Psychotropic drug-induced genetic-epigenetic modulation of CRTC1 gene is associated with early weight gain in a prospective study of psychiatric patients https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6933694/