Dear Pharmacist: Does Prozac cause weight gain? — J.S., Ocala
Dear J.S.: On the contrary. People who take Prozac generally experience significant weight loss; 10 percent to 15 percent of people who use this antidepressant lose about 5 percent of their body weight during treatment. The loss is related to the increase in serotonin — our happy brain chemical — which also makes us feel full. Prozac also causes some gastrointestinal discomfort, such as nausea, vomiting, dry mouth and diarrhea. Because this side effect is not fleeting, it could cause serious weight loss after a few months. This is OK for people who are overweight and depressed. But for thin people, it can be a problem, so much so that the patient may have to switch antidepressants.
Dear Pharmacist: I read your column discussing the benefits of coffee if you have a headache. I love coffee, and I’m curious if there’s any other medicinal benefits to this beverage? Also, why doesn’t my doctor want me to drink it? — M.V., Tampa
Dear M.V.: It’s not the coffee, but the caffeine in coffee that clinicians worry about. Coffee is great if you want to do aerobics but can’t get up off the couch. It’s not so good if you have high blood pressure, heart disease or other serious health conditions. Plus, coffee shouldn’t be combined with many drugs because caffeine can jump-start the heart.
But lately, java junkies have gotten some good news. French researchers now say that coffee is not addictive, even at three cups a day. Also, a Journal of the American Medical Association study conducted on 8,000 men concluded that coffee may prevent Parkinson’s disease. The research, led by Dr. G. Webster Ross at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Honolulu, found that people who do not drink coffee were two to three times more likely to develop Parkinson’s than those who drank one cup a day. Ross suggests that caffeine protects against the nerve-cell destruction that causes Parkinson’s.
And here’s more good news: Dr. Takayuki Shibamoto, a chemist from the University of California, has discovered coffee’s antioxidant benefits. He has been studying coffee — and its aroma — for many years and thinks the aroma of freshly brewed coffee contains anti-aging compounds. Shibamoto explains that powerful substances in the coffee aroma escape rapidly into the air, so “you have to drink it in about 20 minutes after it is brewed.” Gives new meaning to the cliche, “wake up and smell the coffee.”
Write to Suzy Cohen, Lifestyle Department, Sun-Sentinel, 200 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301.
