The Effect of Psychopharmacological Agents on Appetite and Eating

M any medications increase or decrease appetite and/or weight. Some of these have been tested in anorexia nervosa and bulimia. To date, no well-controlled, large-scale studies with successful results have been replicated. In general, there is as yet, no accepted medication for the treatment of anorexia or bulimia (see Chapter 42, this volume). This chapter reviews medications that influence weight and/or appetite, including some that have been given to patients with eating disorders. The presentation is chronological, dealing first with medications generally used before 1970, second during the 1970s and third after the 1970s. Therefore, the text is divided into three sections. Rather than separating medications by whether they increase or decrease appetite or weight, I have retained chronology as the standard within each section. Those that increase appetite could help patients with restrictive anorexia, and those that decrease appetite could help with bulimia.