"Group Health researchers have found that bupropion marketed as Wellbutrin is the only antidepressant that tends to be linked to longterm modest weight loss. Previously Group Health researchers showed a twoway street between depression and body weight People with depression are more likely to be overweight and vice versa. These researchers also found that most antidepressant medications have been linked to weight gain. Prior research on antidepressants and weight change was limited to one year or shorter. But many people take antidepressantsthe most commonly prescribed medications in the United Statesfor longer than a year. So for up to two years the new study followed more than  Group Health patients who started taking an antidepressant. The Journal of Clinical Medicine published it LongTerm Weight Change after Initiating SecondGeneration Antidepressants. Our study suggests that bupropion is the best initial choice of antidepressant for the vast majority of Americans who have depression and are overweight or obese said study leader David Arterburn MD MPH. Hes a senior investigator at Group Health Research Institute GHRI a Group Health physician and an affiliate associate professor in the University of Washington UW School of Medicines Department of Medicine. But in some cases an overweight or obese patient has reasons why bupropion is not for themlike a history of seizure disorderand it would be better for them to choose a different treatment option. Study findings We found that bupropion is the only antidepressant that tends to be linked to weight loss over two years Dr. Arterburn said. All other antidepressants are linked to varying degrees of weight gain.  After two years nonsmokers lost an average of . pounds on bupropioncompared with gaining an average of . pounds on fluoxetine Prozac. So those who took bupropion ended up weighing  pounds less than did those on fluoxetine. Unsurprisingly that difference wasnt seen in people who smoked tobacco. Bupropion is often used to help patients stop smoking. So smokers who take bupropion are likely to be trying to quitand coping with the weight gain that often accompanies attempts to quit smoking. Who should try which antidepressant A large body of evidence indicates no difference in how effectively the newer antidepressants improve peoples moods said Dr. Arterburns coauthor Gregory Simon MD MPH a Group Health psychiatrist GHRI senior investigator and research professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the UW School of Medicine. So it makes sense for doctors and patients to choose antidepressants on the basis of their side effects costs and patients preferencesand now on whether patients are overweight or obese. Bupropion should be considered the firstline drug of choice for people who are overweight or obese Dr. Simon said. But patients should consult their doctor about which medication is right for them before making any changes including starting switching or stopping medication.  Grant R MH from the National Institute of Mental Health funded this research. Drs. Arterburn and Simons coauthors are GHRI Senior Investigator Denise M. Boudreau PhD Research Project Management Director Emily O. Westbrook  Programmer Analyst Mary Kay Theis and Andy Bogart Tamar Sofer PhD a biostatistician at the UW School of Public Health and postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard University and Sebastien Haneuse PhD an associate professor of biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health who used to work at GHRI. Group Health Research Institute Group Health Research Institute does practical research that helps people like you and your family stay healthy. The Institute is the research arm of Seattlebased Group Health Cooperative a consumergoverned nonprofit health care system. Founded in  Group Health Cooperative coordinates health care and coverage. The Institute has conducted nonproprietary publicinterest research on preventing diagnosing and treating major health problems since . Government and private research grants provide its main funding. Follow Group Health research on Twitter Facebook Pinterest LinkedIn or YouTube."