Tag Archives: antidepressants

New study confirms the obvious: Babies of women taking antidepressants while pregnant have more health problems

Dr. Tessa Ververs of the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands and her colleagues found that of the children whose mothers had used antidepressants throughout pregnancy, three had to have a major heart procedure performed in their first year of life. That made them six times more likely than children whose mothers had never used antidepressants to need a heart procedure.

In UK, Doctors under fire as an alarming numbers of children are given drugs to combat depression and ADHD

Shadow Health Minister Anne Milton said doctors should be opting for non-drug treatments rather than reaching for the prescription pad. ‘This data shows that increasingly health professionals are prescribing drugs to treat child mental health problems, when evidence suggests that talking therapies can have an equal, if not better effect.

New book Anatomy of an Epidemic – psychiatric drug-based paradigm fuels epidemic of “mental illness”

A review of the scientific literature reveals that it is our drug-based paradigm of care that is fueling this epidemic. The drugs increase the likelihood that a person will become chronically ill, and induce new and more severe psychiatric symptoms in a significant percentage of patients.

Rampant illegal psychiatric drugging of elderly/nursing home patients: 1,200 violations involving 2,900 patients

The Chicago Tribune’s unprecedented review of more than 40,000 state and federal inspection reports found that all types of nursing homes have been cited for improperly administering psychotropic drugs. The reports show thousands of elderly and disabled people have been affected, many of them drugged without their consent or without a legitimate psychiatric diagnosis that would justify treatment.

Illinois Department of Public Health: 5 things to know about psychotropics (including the right to informed consent)

The Illinois Dept. of Public Health states that consent forms for administering psychotropics must be signed by patients or someone with power of attorney. In general, consents must say what drug will be given, how much and how often. If a doctor wants to add a drug, the consent must be re-signed. The patient must be fully informed of risks.