Health Promotion Atypical Antipsychotic And Weight Gain

Health Promotion: Atypical Antipsychotic and Weight Gain Erica Dunham University of Ontario Institute of Technology HLSC 1810U Jillian Gumbley MSc 24 November 2014 In today’s society mental health has become something that is much more known to individuals and their families. Mental health is something that is as serious as a physical illness but it is still feared and misunderstood by many people including those who are diagnosed with mental illness (Stuart, 2012). Though you cannot see mental illness physically it inside the body and mind and can do just as much damage, if not more. There are many forms of mental illness that include; anxiety disorders, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, eating†¦show more content†¦Unlike the way medication is usually prescribed to clear up a sore throat in a couple days, atypical antipsychotic medication for those with mental illness are usually taken for the remainder of one’s life and if they go off their medication then the psychosis returns. In many cases where the weight gain is overwhelming patients stop the medication because it has now affected their self-esteem (Kabinoff et a l.,2003). This paper is going to focus on research done involving the beginning use of atypical medications and their side effects including weight gain and diabetes mellitus as well include strategies in management and prevention. Atypical antipsychotics have great results for those suffering with mental illness but will implementing programs that teach and monitor diet, exercise and lifestyle benefit and decrease the weight gain of patients on medications like Clozapine and Olanzapine? In the early 1990s new antipsychotic medications were developed and used to help those dealing with bipolar and schizophrenia which have symptoms like psychosis and hallucinations. These medications are called second-generation or atypical antipsychotics and they are the first line