SILVA, Valk Santos.
Resumo:
Anxiety and depression are two mental health conditions that affect millions of people
worldwide. While anxiety is characterized by excessive worry, nervousness, and fear,
depression manifests through persistent feelings of sadness, hopelessness, and lack
of interest in daily activities. The treatment of both conditions involves strategies such
as psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy. The use of anxiolytics and antidepressants
predisposes patients to potential interactions that influence both nutritional status and
the availability of certain nutrients. Such interactions can have serious consequences
and affect the treatment of anxiety and depression. Therefore, the aim of this study
was to investigate the potential drug-nutrient interactions of antidepressants and
anxiolytics provided as part of the basic pharmaceutical assistance by the Municipal
Government of Picuí-PB. To begin the research, the municipal pharmacy was
contacted to obtain information on which anxiolytic and antidepressant drugs are
available to the population. Subsequently, through a narrative literature review, a
search was conducted in scientific articles, literary works, books, electronic leaflets,
manuals, and drug-nutrient interaction verification systems to comprehensively identify
all interactions between the examined drugs and foods. The descriptors used were
"drug-nutrient interaction with anxiolytics" and "drug-nutrient interaction with
antidepressants," and drug-nutrient interactions involving each individual drug in the
study were also researched. Publications on antidepressants, anxiolytics, and foods
were selected based on titles, keywords, or mentions in the abstract about their
interactions and nutritional impact. Those that did not meet these criteria were
excluded. The Picuí basic pharmacy contains 17 medications for the treatment of
anxiety and depression, of which 6 are anxiolytics and 5 are antidepressants. All
medications have significant interactions with foods or micronutrients. The foods with
the most potential interaction with antidepressants and anxiolytics are: coffee,
grapefruit, and alcohol. It is worth noting that some classes of antidepressants
influence weight gain in patients during prolonged treatment. Such information
regarding interactions involving antidepressants and anxiolytics with foods is of high
importance to assist healthcare professionals in guiding users of these medications to
avoid possible complications during treatment.