Sertraline is not recommended for weight loss treatments. However, one of the most common effects with the use of the drug is nausea and loss of appetite, which can cause a reduction in food intake, promoting weight loss.
As a drug that increases the availability of serotonin, a neurotransmitter responsible for balancing mood, sertraline is indicated to treat situations such as depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Understand what sertraline is and the main indications.
It is important to emphasize that sertraline is contraindicated for some people and can cause side effects, such as tiredness, dizziness, diarrhea, poor digestion, insomnia and decreased sexual desire. Therefore, the use of the drug should only be done under medical supervision.
Does sertraline lose weight or gain weight?
One of the most common adverse reactions with the use of sertraline are nausea and loss of appetite, symptoms that contribute to reduced food intake and weight loss.
In addition, sertraline helps to control anxiety, which prevents food cravings, favoring weight loss.
However, loss of appetite is common in some people with depression or post-traumatic disorder, which leads to reduced food intake and weight loss. In these cases, treatment with the use of sertraline improves mood and increases appetite, favoring weight gain.
How to lose weight in a healthy way
Sertraline is a drug that is not indicated for weight loss. Therefore, some recommendations to lose weight in a healthy and effective way are:
- Maintaining a balanced diet: Regularly consuming high-fiber foods such as whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, maintaining a balanced intake of healthy fats such as olive oil and low-fat proteins, and avoiding foods high in fat and sugar are essential to assist with weight loss. See an example of a healthy diet to lose weight;
- Chew food well: it takes the brain about 20 minutes to indicate that the stomach is full and it’s time to stop eating. Therefore, chewing food calmly helps control hunger, favoring weight loss;
- Drink plenty of water: drinking around 2 liters of water a day helps to lose weight, because when we are thirsty, our body can confuse the signs of thirst with hunger;
- Get a good night’s sleep: sleeping between 7 and 9 hours a night helps balance ghrelin and leptin, the hormones responsible for balancing hunger and satiety, contributing to weight loss.
In addition, it is also recommended to practice regular physical activities, such as running, swimming, dancing or fighting, which will speed up the metabolism, increasing the expenditure of calories and encouraging effective and healthy weight loss.
Side effects and contraindications
The most common side effects with the use of sertraline include dry mouth, increased sweating, dizziness, tremor, diarrhea, poor digestion, headache, nausea, poor appetite, insomnia, drowsiness and altered sexual function, especially delay in ejaculation and decreased desire.
Sertraline is not indicated for children under the age of 6, pregnant or nursing women. In addition, the drug should be used with caution by people who are taking antidepressant medications such as tranylcypromine and moclobemide.
People with diabetes should keep their blood glucose levels under control while taking this medicine. People with glaucoma, epilepsy, and cardiovascular problems should be evaluated before starting sertraline and monitored by a doctor while using this medication.
