Researcher Urges Caution When Applying Genetics to Psychiatry
In a review editorial for the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, neurobiology researcher Steven Dubovsky from the University at Buffalo argues against the adoption of...
“Lawmakers Accuse HHS of Delaying FDA Guidelines for Off-Label Marketing”
Ed Silverman reports for STAT’s Pharmalot that high-ranking congressmen are accusing the Department of Health and Human Services of deliberately delaying new guidelines on...
“Feds Probe Drugmaker-Charity Connections”
Last week, reports circulated about a system through which drug companies used charitable giving for profit. Now, three drug manufacturers, Gilead Sciences Inc., Biogen...
Does Your Child Have ‘ADHD’? It Might Depend On Your Doctor
A study published in the journal Pediatrics reveals large differences from one pediatrician to the next when it comes to diagnosing and prescribing drugs for ‘ADHD.’ The researchers found that the percentage of children being diagnosed with ‘ADHD’ varied from as high as 16% of patients at some offices to as little as 1% of patients at others. The data also revealed significant but lower variability in the pediatric diagnosis of anxiety and depression.
Mindfulness Therapy May Be More Effective Without Antidepressants
While an estimated 74-percent of patients diagnosed with major depression receive a prescription for an antidepressant, new research reveals that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)...
“The Hefty Price of ‘Study Drugs’ Misuse on College Campuses”
For the Conversation, Binghamton University researcher Lina Begdache tackles the issue of the growing use of 'Study Drugs' in the student population. “Animal studies show...
“The Hidden Harms of Antidepressants”
In a new article for Scientific American, Diana Kwon reports on how the true risks for suicide and aggression in children and teens taking...
“World Benzodiazepine Awareness Day Set for July 11th”
The 11 July 2016 will be the inaugural World Benzodiazepine Awareness Day, part of a campaign to raise global awareness about the issue of doctor-induced benzodiazepine dependency, which affects...
Mental Health Treatments Top List of US Healthcare Spending
According to new research, the United States spends over 200 billion annually on treatment and hospitalization for mental health issues, exceeding spending on heart...
Antidepressants Not a ‘One Size Fits All’ Solution, Researchers Find
The largest ever study of the thoughts and reactions of antidepressant users reveals that many people have vastly different understandings and experiences of the...
“Psychiatric Drugs Killing More Users than Heroin, Cocaine, Say Health Experts”
A groundbreaking article for The Province is “sounding the alarm over the heightened risk of death linked to the use of psychiatric drugs.” They report on...
Coyne Covers Citalopram Controversy
In his “Mind the Brain” blog for PLOS, well-known researcher James Coyne reviews the controversy surrounding the latest case of a fraudulently reported study...
Review Links Antipsychotics with Risk for Heart Attacks
A systematic review published this week in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology found that patients taking antipsychotic drugs were at nearly twice the risk...
“Why We Shouldn’t Trade a Weakened FDA for More Medical Research Funds”
Ed Silverman at STAT reports that Congress has linked increased research funding to “fast-track” approval procedures. “By linking the extra funds to speedier approvals,...
“Report From APPG for Prescribed Drug Dependence”
James Davies, of the Council for Evidence-Based Psychiatry, issues his report from last week’s meeting in the UK Parliament concerning the connection between increased...
“The Unfulfilled Promise of the Antidepressant Medications”
A new article in The Medical Journal of Australia laments that, while antidepressant use continues to climb, the research evidence shows that their effectiveness...
“Medicare Drug Program Fails to Monitor Prescribers, Putting Seniors and Disabled at Risk”
ProPublica and The Washington Post have performed an investigation revealing that Medicare has failed to monitor the safety of the large quantities of drugs...
Antidepressants Do Not Prevent Suicides, May Increase Risk
When the CDC released data revealing an increasing suicide rate in the US, some experts, speaking to major media outlets, speculated that the increase...
“Public Wary of Faster Approvals of New Drugs, STAT-Harvard Poll Finds”
According to a new STAT-Harvard poll, the majority of Americans oppose new legislation that would speed up the approval of new drugs and medical...
Olanzapine Can Cause Serious Skin Reaction, FDA Warns
The US FDA has issued a new warning for the atypical antipsychotic Olanzapine, also known by the brand names Zyprexa and Symbyax. The agency...
“Politicians and Experts Meet at Parliament to Explore Record Antidepressant Prescribing and Disability”
The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Prescribed Drug Dependence is meeting today, May 11th, to discuss evidence of the link between the rise in disability...
“CDC Warns that Americans May be Overmedicating Youngest Children with ADHD”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new data indicating that as many as 75% of young children who are diagnosed with...
FDA Warns About New Impulse-Control Problems Associated With Abilify
Yesterday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a warning that the antipsychotic drug aripiprazole or Abilify is associated with compulsive and uncontrollable...
Mindfulness Therapy Can Prevent Depression Relapse, Review Finds
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) may be more effective at reducing the risk of depressive relapse compared to current standard treatments with antidepressant drugs. A...
“Bullied Children Need Support Not Antidepressants”
Nick Harrop, a campaign manager at YoungMinds, supporting young people’s mental health and wellbeing, said antidepressants for children should never be the only course of action....
