Why Does Wellbutrin Cause Weight Loss?
Weight loss obviously isn’t perfectly well understood, or we’d’ve solved the problem of obesity by now. (Which we haven’t, in case that wasn’t obvious.) There’s a splendid color plate by Frank Netter illustrating the effect of hypothalamic lesions in the cat. Basically if you lesion in a pair of tiny nuclei (extreme lateral) in the hypothalamus, cats become anemic and placid; in the ventromedial area, however, lesions make the cat voracious and rageful. The hypothalamus exerts control, not only of mood and the appetitive functions in terms of behavior, but also influences metabolism by its connections with the pituitary; thyroid, cortisol and other steroids, insulin and insulin-like growth factors and growth hormones are all under direct regulatory control by the hypothalamus. Unlike the “average” brain cell (neuron) that runs on glutamate or GABA, cells involved in these functions (loosely termed “limbic” functions) often use monoamines, which as far as you are concerned means dopamin
You might be interested in this: “Bupropion is a norepinephrine and dopamine uptake inhibitor that has been available for several years for the treatment of depression and aiding smokers to quit. Although bupropion is not approved for treating obesity, three randomized clinical trials have shown some degree of efficacy for this drug in promoting weight loss in obese patients. The present drug profile provides a review of the pharmacology of bupropion, clinical evidence of efficacy with regard to weight reduction, tolerability and risks, and the current and future role of this drug in the management of obesity.” Email me if you’re interested in the full article.
Wellbutrin is well known as also being a stimulant. Stimulants help weight loss by making people more active and upping their metabolism.
The true reason is not known, but bupropion is obviously known to inhibit DA reuptake. It has been speculated that elevating synaptic DA levels or agonizing DA receptors can cause weight loss. The physiology of how DA is associated with weight loss is only partially understood, but there may be links to leptin and insulin, among many other factors.
