Posted by Cam W. on December 30, 2001, at 6:02:30
In reply to Fatty foods Effexor - any reactions?, posted by ST on December 30, 2001, at 3:10:26
ST - I never had any problem with nausea when I started Effexor XR. I did increase my dose in small increments (37.5mg) fairly slowly (every 5 to 7 days). In my experience the original regular release Effexor seemed to cause users more nausea and vomitting as start-up side effects, even though the manufacturer (Wyeth-Ayerst) states that nausea and vomitting is 3 times more prevalent when starting the XR version.
I know that most pharmacists slap a "Take With Food" auxillary label on Effexor XR prescription bottles, but most people I have talked to said that they never need to take this med with food, especially after taking the drug for more than a month (ie. after the body adjusts to the drug, and the start-up side effects subside).
I did hear one person say the same as you. Every time that this person ate at McDonalds, and then took Effexor XR, this person became nauseous and crampy. Usually, I only have to pass downwind from a McDonalds to get the same effect, several hours after taking my dose < wink >.
Another person did say that fatty foods made him/her nauseous when starting Effexor XR, but I believe that this person said that this stopped when he/she started taking it at breakfast (with toast and coffee) instead of with a full meal at suppertime (which was how this person was told to take the Effexor XR by the previous pharmacist). This person had said that there was no suppertime nausea when the meal contained no beef fat (ie. there was no problem with barbecued fish or chicken, but burgers, meatloaf, and pasta with meat sauce caused problems). < I hope I'm not mixing up patients, here >
These are the only two times (you are the third) where I have heard that fatty foods made a difference. I have had other people say that they did take their Effexor XR with meals, but ended up getting cramps. Almost everyone who continued taking the Effexor XR in spite of stomach upset, eventually had this side effect subside.
So, I guess that you can try a couple of experiments. You could try taking the Effexor XR on an empty stomach in the morning (eg. one hour before or two hours after you eat).
The other options is to avoid taking the drug with fatty foods until you have stabilized at a dose for about a month. If you still need to take the Effexor XR with food, you could try it with a fatty meal to see if it still upsets your stomach.
Low fat meals, at least once a day, is probably a good idea anyway. God knows, I would probably be healthier if I ate fewer fatty meals.
Good luck, and keep us posted on what you decide to try (and the results). - Cam
poster:Cam W.
thread:88210
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011222/msgs/88215.html