Quote Originally Posted by ny biker View Post
I used Advair for about 6 years. I don't think it caused any weight gain. I've been taking Depakote for migraines for over 15 years and that definitely affects my weight/appetite, but I didn't notice any difference when I started with the Advair.

This is going back a few years so I don't remember all the details, but I suspected that the Advair caused some minor and very short-lived throat irritation (my voice sounded slightly different) when I started to use it and later increased the dosage. Also I had a series of colds at one point that I thought might have been related to increasing the dosage. But that was also a short-term thing and since then I've definitely gotten fewer upper respiratory infections than I used to get.

Last year my doctor switched me to Pulmicort which contains only one medication and is a corticosteroid. (Advair is two meds.) I've been pretty much the same since making the switch, i.e., no changes either in asthma symptoms or side effects.

My father has been using various asthma meds for 15+ years, including Advair for at least 5 years, and he hasn't mentioned any negative side affects from it.

In general you shouldn't stop taking medications without talking to your doctor first. Also try asking your pharmacist if weight gain is a side affect of Advair -- pharmacists are a great resource for information on meds.

Good luck.
Thx for your help. I know exactly what you are saying about the throat/voice changes. It's like you have a gurly frog in your throat. Like a soar throat sound, but not the normal full soar throat feeling of pain. It's good to know that it did subside with time. Also, about the weight loss. Maybe it's another one of the meds. Think I'll have to pull a full review. The doc was on vacation last time I checked in. His NP and I talked a bit about it. She said it's hard to figure out which med is doing what when there are diff ones. The pharm is a good tip. We have one really good guy at ours. Think I'll have to seek him out. Thinking the doc will be back soon from travel.