Theory about medication

I am aware that autistic people have different tummies. Potentially different tummy acid too. Stomach acid affects absorption of food and medication pills. So could it be that my antidepressants don't work because my tummy isn't absorbing them properly. Just an idea?! I also know that many autistic people on here claim that these SSRI drugs don't do anything for them. Could this reason that I have outlined be the cause? In my case I don't think my tummy absorbs things too well to be honest. Hence why I can take many different pills and have no effects. What do you all think about this?

  • I'm one of those people who seem to have limited success with various medication. I went down a bit of a rabbit hole a while back doing random research. Obviously you can read all sorts into stuff you find on the internet.

    Apparently there's a gene mutation that causes issues around absorption of certain medications, there's also some conjecture on whether autistic people have a higher prevalence of this mutation than the general population.

    As for funny tummies I could be stress or gut biomie that cause these issues. These can be exacerbated by poor or picky diet.

  • If medication often seems ineffective it can be as a result of a faster than normal metabolism which means that the body breaks down the active ingredients too quickly for them to have the desired effect. I have chronic insomnia and have never been prescribed a single medication that gets me to sleep because my system goes at more than twice the normal rate.

    Just thought I'd throw that into the mix as it is pretty common amongst people with ADHD as well as autism.

  • The acid in the stomach is hydrochloric acid, it is the same in all humans. You can have too much or too little of it, but the acid is the same. It is mostly used to help break down complex molecules like proteins, fats and carbohydrates into simpler and smaller molecules, it also activates digestive enzymes which do the same chemical job. SSRIs are relatively small molecules to begin with and do not require digestion for them to pass through the gut wall into the bloodstream.

    The SSRI sertraline certainly did something to me, it did not affect my mood, but it did give me blinding - literally - daily migraines. It is more likely that differences in neurone function and brain architecture between autistic and allistic people would account for variation in the effects of any psychoactive drug.

  • It’s news to me too Debbie. I would like to see evidence for the claim too. 

  • There is no evidence to make the claim that autistic people’s ‘tummies’ are biologically different to those of non autistic people. Depression, stress, anxiety and all sorts of other things can lead to digestive problems, and these aren’t the preserve of the autistic community, even though there does seem to be a higher incidence of depression and anxiety within the autistic community.

    Perhaps more people who happen to be autistic and have digestive problems are more likely to post here? 

  • Is stomach acid actually different, or is it the result of stress?

    Personally I think it might also be because depression is more a symptom of other issues, trauma, burnout, stress, so treating a symptom is not going to make it go away.

    Brain function is also different, so it is not surprising drug effects are different.

  • Hahahaha that's so funny. I think we all know this if it's news to you then where have u been the past 30 years haha

  • I am aware that autistic people have different tummies

    That's news to me.

    Are you referring to actual physical differences in our stomachs?

    If so could you link to an article about it if you know of one please.