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Ritalin and Cachexia - a phase IV clinical study of FDA data

Summary:

Cachexia is reported as a side effect among people who take Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride), especially for people who are female, 60+ old, have been taking the drug for 1 - 6 months also take Marinol, and have Nausea.

The phase IV clinical study analyzes which people have Cachexia when taking Ritalin. It is created by eHealthMe based on reports of 26,179 people who have side effects when taking Ritalin from the FDA, and is updated regularly.

What is Ritalin?

Ritalin has active ingredients of methylphenidate hydrochloride. It is often used in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. eHealthMe is studying from 29,423 Ritalin users. Check the latest studies of Ritalin.

What is Cachexia?

Cachexia (loss of weight) is found to be associated with 707 drugs and 1,197 conditions by eHealthMe. Check the latest studies of Cachexia.

On Jan, 23, 2026

26,179 people reported to have side effects when taking Ritalin.
Among them, 18 people (0.07%) have Cachexia.

Could Ritalin cause Cachexia?

Among these 18 people:

How long have people been on Ritalin when they have Cachexia? *

  • < 1 month: 0.0 %
  • 1 - 6 months: 50 %
  • 6 - 12 months: 0.0 %
  • 1 - 2 years: 50 %
  • 2 - 5 years: 0.0 %
  • 5 - 10 years: 0.0 %
  • 10+ years: 0.0 %

What is the gender of people who have Cachexia when taking Ritalin? *

  • female: 62.5 %
  • male: 37.5 %

What is the age of people who have Cachexia when taking Ritalin? *

  • 0-1: 0.0 %
  • 2-9: 20 %
  • 10-19: 0.0 %
  • 20-29: 0.0 %
  • 30-39: 10 %
  • 40-49: 0.0 %
  • 50-59: 20 %
  • 60+: 50 %

What are other drugs people take besides Ritalin? *

  1. Ativan: 5 people, 27.78%
  2. Marinol: 5 people, 27.78%
  3. Prevacid: 4 people, 22.22%
  4. Lasix: 4 people, 22.22%
  5. Avastin: 4 people, 22.22%
  6. Diflucan: 3 people, 16.67%
  7. Nexium: 3 people, 16.67%
  8. Colace: 3 people, 16.67%
  9. Atrovent: 3 people, 16.67%
  10. Simvastatin: 3 people, 16.67%

What are other side effects people have besides Cachexia? *

  1. Weakness: 8 people, 44.44%
  2. Nausea (feeling of having an urge to vomit): 8 people, 44.44%
  3. Appetite - Decreased (decreased appetite occurs when you have a reduced desire to eat): 6 people, 33.33%
  4. Weight Decreased: 6 people, 33.33%
  5. Fatigue (feeling of tiredness): 5 people, 27.78%
  6. Abdominal Pain: 5 people, 27.78%
  7. Jaundice - Yellow Skin (a yellowish pigmentation of the skin): 5 people, 27.78%
  8. Pressure Ulcer: 5 people, 27.78%
  9. Confusion: 4 people, 22.22%
  10. Herpes Zoster: 4 people, 22.22%

What are the existing conditions these people have? *

  1. Pain: 4 people, 22.22%
  2. Nausea (feeling of having an urge to vomit): 4 people, 22.22%
  3. Stress And Anxiety: 2 people, 11.11%
  4. Sleep Disorder: 2 people, 11.11%
  5. Appetite - Decreased (decreased appetite occurs when you have a reduced desire to eat): 2 people, 11.11%
  6. Brain Neoplasm Malignant (brain cancer tumour): 2 people, 11.11%
  7. Depressed Level Of Consciousness: 2 people, 11.11%
  8. Diarrhea: 2 people, 11.11%
  9. Gout (uric acid crystals building up in the body): 2 people, 11.11%
  10. High Blood Pressure: 2 people, 11.11%

* Approximation only. Some reports may have incomplete information.

Do you take Ritalin and have Cachexia?

- Check whether Cachexia is associated with a drug or a condition
- Predict drug outcomes for up to one year with AI
- Get an AI agent to monitor your drugs continuously

Related studies:

Effectiveness of, long term effects of, and alternative drugs to Ritalin:

Cachexia treatments and more:

How severe was Cachexia and when was it recovered:

Expand to all the drugs that have ingredients of methylphenidate hydrochloride:

Sub-studies by gender and age:

Female: 0-1 2-9 10-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60+

Male: 0-1 2-9 10-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60+

Browse all side effects of Ritalin:

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Browse all the drugs that are associated with Cachexia:

Browse all the conditions that are associated with Cachexia:

Drugs similar to Ritalin and Cachexia :

Related publications that referenced our studies

How the study uses the data?

The study uses data from the FDA. It is based on methylphenidate hydrochloride (the active ingredients of Ritalin) and Ritalin (the brand name). Other drugs that have the same active ingredients (e.g. generic drugs) are not considered. Dosage of drugs is not considered in the study.

How to use the study?

DO NOT STOP MEDICATIONS without first consulting your doctor. If there are any serious or long term adverse effects discovered in the study, discuss the study with your doctor to ensure that proper medication management will be in place if applicable.

Who is eHealthMe?

With medical big data and proven AI/ML algorithms, eHealthMe provides a platform for everyone to run phase IV clinical trials. We study millions of patients and 5,000 more each day. Results of our real-world drug study have been referenced on 800+ peer-reviewed medical publications, including The Lancet, Mayo Clinic Proceedings, and Nature. Our analysis results are available to researchers, health care professionals, patients (testimonials), and software developers (open API).

WARNING, DISCLAIMER, USE FOR PUBLICATION

WARNING: Please DO NOT STOP MEDICATIONS without first consulting a physician since doing so could be hazardous to your health.

DISCLAIMER: All material available on eHealthMe.com is for informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment provided by a qualified healthcare provider. All information is observation-only. Our phase IV clinical studies alone cannot establish cause-effect relationship. Different individuals may respond to medication in different ways. Every effort has been made to ensure that all information is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. The use of the eHealthMe site and its content is at your own risk.

If you use this eHealthMe study on publication, please acknowledge it with a citation: study title, URL, accessed date.

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