antibiotics effect on weight

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margaretturk
margaretturk Posts: 5,046 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
I recently finished a course in antibiotics to prevent lymes disease. For the last ten months I have been able to maintain my weight loss within three pounds. I recently gained another three pounds, so now I am six pounds over my goal weight. Have others had trouble with weight gain after antibiotic treatment and what helped you? I want to stop this weight gain and to return to my goal weight. Thanks.

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  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
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    Sorry about the Lymes disease. I was diagnosed three times and I am very sympathetic.

    Antibiotics kill off your gut bacteria, which can help you maintain weight well. They can also lead to fluid buildup through various means.

    If you go to a pharmacy they can give you an over-the-counter pill that will help you repopulate your guts. I also highly recommend kefir (homemade is best, but Lifeway is still good) and plain yoghurt with live bacteria are also helpful.

    Good luck!
  • mudtea
    mudtea Posts: 27 Member
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    Michael Specter, a science writer for The New Yorker, wrote an article that touched on weight gain from antibiotic use as well as one about current treatment protocols for Lyme disease. I don't exactly get all my information from Michael Specter, but coincidentally he wrote articles on each of the concerns you have.

    The articles are quite long, but I think well worth the read.

    "Germs are us"
    http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/10/22/121022fa_fact_specter?currentPage=all

    Excerpt:
    " Roughly three-quarters of the antibiotics consumed in the United States are fed to poultry, cows, and pigs, not to treat illness but as dietary supplements to promote faster growth. That saves the meat industry a lot of money; the sooner the animals reach a market weight, the sooner they can be slaughtered and sold. Until recently, the biochemical reasons for that weight gain, and its unsettling implications for humans, were murky. The new data suggest that even minimal exposure to antibiotics alters the gut bacteria of these animals, which may influence their ability to metabolize nutrients properly."

    "The Lyme Wars"
    http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/07/01/130701fa_fact_specter?currentPage=all
  • fizzfizz
    fizzfizz Posts: 94 Member
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    had a LOT of (dental-related) antibiotics a couple of years ago and found the opposite effect (!) but did notice that my digestion was shot after all of that which might have subconsciously put me off eating a bit ... I tried out the probiotic yoghurts to good effect but now use probiotics in tablet form as they are a lot less sugary and definitely worth trying

    sorry to hear about Lymes but good news that you were diagnosed as that can go undetected with miserable health results

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