Prednisone for swollen tonsils(5 days).... real weight gain?

I don't get why almost all meds say weight gain as a side effect?! isn't it true that you will only gain real weight, meaning not water, if you eat more than you burn?

*bump*

While it is true you gain weight when you eat more than you burn, you will find that that particular medication will make you eat more. I had to take it for seven days for back pain and I could not believe how hungry I was. It was not ordinary hunger pains, it felt as if something was trying to gnaw a hole in my stomach. I asked friends of mine that has also taken Prednisone if they had the same side effects, all of them experienced the same kind of hunger. My advice is to really watch what you eat while on the medication, because in this case the warning is absolutely true.

I have never taken prednisone, but my children have.  I didnt notice anything different with them, but then in their case it was for severe asthma attacks, so they were breathing like they had just run a marathon anyway! 

However, I am on effexor for depression and I gained about 60 pounds with it.  I talked to my Dr about it and they totally deny that the drug has any weight gain attached to it, but I have known several other people who have said that once they got off the effexor they lost all the weight they had gained with it almost instantly.  I have no idea what or why, all I know is that once I started it I gained what feels like a ton of weight very quickly.  I want to get off of the drug, but the side effects make that difficult, so for now, I just know that I have to work harder.  It's not impossible, just harder!

I have to take Prednisone for a medical condition and have been on it for over 6 months (not really what the doctors wants but every time they try to take me off it have I have serious reactions) and I have actually lost weight on it.  When I was on a high dose I lost about a pound a day and now that I'm on a medium dose I'm losing about 1.5 a week.  So it really depends on your body. 

I do seem hungrier but I make sure that I eat healthy stuff when I have a craving.  I think if you go start it thinking your going to gain weight then you make yourself but if you say it's just a week on the drug then you can get thru it.  Without gaining.

Very good point!  Mind over matter.