Apart from the obvious therapeutic benefits, the use of antipsychotic drugs can have very serious side effects. During a six-week study on animals given antipsychotic drugs, their weight doubled. This may indicate that there is some link between these drugs and obesity in humans as well. There are reports of some patients taking antipsychotic drugs becoming obese and developing diabetes. Research is underway to elucidate the mechanism that causes increased weight gain and damage to pancreatic function while taking antipsychotic drugs.