Diet plays a key role in overall health and longevity, and medication affects how your body digests, absorbs and utilizes the nutrients in the foods you consume. If you take one or more prescription medications to manage a health condition, special attention should be paid to how the drugs you take affect your nutritional status.
Diuretics
Diuretics like furosemide are prescribed by physicians to treat excess fluid buildup in the body. When fluids are flushed from the body, they often carry away needed potassium, sodium and chloride. However, a potassium-sparing diuretic, called hydrochlorothiazide, may be prescribed to prevent low levels of potassium as a result of diuretic usage.
Heartburn Control
Heartburn medications like Zantac and Pepcid belong to a classification of medications known as histamine H2 antagonists. These drugs reduce the amount of gastric acid secreted by the stomach. Gastric acid is needed to digest protein and for the body to absorb folic acid.
Oral Contraceptives
Women taking oral contraceptives are at risk for vitamin B6, folate and B12 depletion. These can be alleviated by eating a well-balanced diet or by taking a single multivitamin supplement. Taking oral contraceptives also increases the likelihood of iron-deficiency anemia. According to registered pharmacist Gloria Nichols, women already store less iron than men. Eating iron-rich foods, including meats and leafy green vegetables, will help reduce the incidence of iron-deficiency anemia.
Drugs That Decrease Appetite
A lack of appetite is called anorexia. This should not be confused with the medical condition known as anorexia nervosa, whose sufferers control their weight by extreme calorie restriction. According to the Merck Manual, many drugs cause decreased or a lack of appetite, including antibiotics taken to treat infections, digoxin taken for heart failure and morphine taken for pain management. If you are taking a medication that decreases your appetite, try eating smaller meals more frequently or discuss the use of dietary supplements, like shakes, to increase your caloric and nutritional intake.
Drugs That Increase Appetite
Some drugs decrease appetite, while others will increase it. Alcohol, insulin, thyroid medications and many psychoactive drugs increase hunger. To avoid the ill effects of weight gain, patients on these medications should keep track of their caloric intake with a food journal and increase physical activity, as long as it is approved by a physician.
