Avapro & Weight Loss

Avapro is a common angiotensin receptor blocker prescribed to treat high blood pressure. Officially, Avapro does not have an effect on weight; however users have experienced slight weight gain or weight loss while on the medication. Overall, minor weight loss or gain while on Avapro is likely a bodily reaction to the drug and should not be a significant issue.

Function

• Angiotensin receptor blockers, or ARBs for short, primarily help reduce high blood pressure by increasing blood flow through the vessels. They do so by doing exactly what the name implies, blocking angiotensin receptors. This causes your blood vessels to increase in diameter, resulting in greater blood flow, as outlined in Medicinenet.com. Avapro also reduces the amount of water and sodium that your body retains, further reducing blood pressure.

Side Effects

• Weight gain or loss are not known side effects for Avapro. According to Blood-pressure.emedtv.com, Avapro users in clinical trials experienced the following common side effects: Fatigue, diarrhea, heartburn and dizziness. Less common, but more serious side effects include unexplained skin rashes, difficulty breathing, decrease in urine produced, and unexplained swelling of the head or neck. Weight loss is not an officially identified side effect from Avapro, but anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that a decent portion of Avapro users experience weight gain when on the medication.

Weight Gain

• Potential weight gain while on Avapro has gone relatively unexplained. Because gradual weight gain was not a side effect experienced during Avapro's clinical trials, weight gain that occurs when using Avapro may occur due to other factors regarding the user's lifestyle. However, as noted by Blood-pressure.emedtv.com, a rapid weight gain of 3 to 5 lbs. in a single week is a possible sign of congestive heart failure. This is also accompanied by difficulty breathing and swelling of the feet, ankles or legs. Contact your doctor immediately if you experience rapid weight gain and any of the aforementioned symptoms.

Weight Loss

• Losing weight on Avapro can most likely be attributed to the medication's affect on water and sodium retention. Rxmed.com identifies that one of Avapro's mechanisms of action is reducing the body's aldosterone secreting effects. Aldosterone, as explained by Sparknotes.com, is a hormone that increases sodium re-absorption which also increases the retention of water. When Avapro acts to reduce the amount of aldosterone that is secreted, it helps decrease the body's overall blood pressure. This results in an increased excretion of water and sodium and in turn, may help lead to a minor reduction in weight.

Considerations

• Weight gain, while not an official side effect, can occur as an effect of the body's interaction with the drug or due to lifestyle factors. Similarly, weight loss can occur due to the medication's reduction in water and sodium retention. Most importantly though, experiencing rapid weight gain or rapid weight loss is an absolute negative side effect when taking Avapro and you should contact your doctor as soon as possible.