Antidepressants Actually Reduce Serotonin Levels
Common scientific beliefs about serotonin levels in depression and how antidepressants act on the brain appear to be completely backwards.
No Proven Treatments of Any Kind for Psychosis or Schizophrenia in Children or Youth
There are no proven treatments of any kind for children or adolescents experiencing psychosis or schizophrenia, according to a meta-analysis of randomized comparison trials published in PLOS One.
Stopping SSRI Antidepressants Can Cause Long, Intense Withdrawal Problems
In the first systematic review of withdrawal problems that patients experience when trying to get off SSRI antidepressant medications, researchers found that withdrawing from SSRIs was comparable to trying to quit addictive benzodiazepines.
Six Years of Re-education and Restrictions Sufficient to Change Inappropriate Prescribing Habits
A six-year program run by the NHS Foundation Trust aimed at reducing high rates of inappropriate polypharmacy and overprescribing by physicians and psychiatrists to mental health patients in UK inner cities was successful.
Corrupted Drug Trials Frequently Found, But Facts Hidden from Journals, Public
The US Food and Drug Administration frequently uncovers evidence of improper conduct in drug trials, but they are almost never mentioned in the medical journals that subsequently publish the findings.
Patients Complain about Antipsychotic Medications Inducing “Zombie-like” State
People who take antipsychotic medications experience many side effects which have "major disruptive impact on their lives," according to research in the Journal of Mental Health Nursing.
Former Minnesota Governor Criticizes UMinn Psychiatry Department
Former Minnesota state governor Arne Carlson has agreed with MIA Blogger Carl Elliott and has asked the legislature to delay appointing the new Board of Regents for the University of Minnesota until a proper investigation of its psychiatry department occurs.
Negative “Nocebo” Response Even More Powerful Than “Placebo” Response?
Doctors who intentionally or unintentionally communicate to patients that they do not believe or understand them could be causing patients' symptoms to worsen.
New “Binge Eating Disorder” Drug Generating Controversy
The US Food and Drug Administration has expanded the approved uses of an ADHD drug to make it the first-ever drug
treatment for "binge-eating disorder."
Prescriber of Huge Amounts of Antipsychotic Drug Was Taking Kickbacks
ProPublica has provided an update on their investigation of Dr. Michael Reinstein. "A former Chicago psychiatrist who was the nation's top prescriber of the...
FDA System for Recording Adverse Drug Effects Perilously Deficient
The system that the US FDA is using to gather and report on information about dangerous side effects from medications is extremely unreliable and...
Hospital Website Health Care Information May Not Be Reliable
An investigation found that many US hospital websites were more like advertising outlets than educational portals.
Over One Thousand Boys Grew Breasts “Probably” Caused By Common Psychiatric Medication
According to an ex-chief of the FDA, Johnson & Johnson knew long before it started warning people that Risperdal could cause boys to grow breasts.
Certain Antidepressants, Sleep Aids Associated with Higher Dementia Risk
Greater cumulative doses of drugs that are anticholinergic or block the neurotransmitter acetylcholine are associated with significant increases in dementia and Alzheimer's.
Antipsychotics Again Strongly Linked to Falls and Fractures
Three independent studies in two journals reported strong links between antipsychotics and falls and fractures.
Common Alzheimer’s Drug Linked to Potentially Life-threatening Conditions
A popular Alzheimer's and dementia drug has been linked to two potentially fatal conditions.
FDA-approved Ads Misinform Patients About Antipsychotics and Motor Dysfunction
Food and Drug Administration-approved information and public advertisements are misleading the public about the actual neurodegenerative risks from second-generation antipsychotics.
On Becoming Critical
In order for you to understand where I am coming from, you probably need to know a bit about how I got here. Throughout my psychiatric training I had always, in the back of mind, this question: What is the difference between my suffering and those of my patients? How come they get all this treatment and I got none? Why do they have a ‘brain disease’ (there was a time when I tentatively believed in this sort of thing), whilst I, who was at times symptomatically severe enough to warrant medication, have no brain disease? The answer seems plain to me now. I had suffered exactly in the same way as many of the people I see every day do, but I had been lucky enough to avoid labeling and drugging.
Psychedelic Use Associated with Reductions in Suicidal Tendencies
People who have taken a psychedelic drug at least once have less suicidal thinking than the general population.
Researchers Discover How Plastic Contaminants Cause Brain Changes and Hyperactivity
Researchers believe they have found "the smoking gun" that links common contaminants leaching from plastics to "adverse brain development and hyperactivity."
Study Begins into Violence Against People with Mental Health Issues
A study into prejudice, hatred and violence directed against people with mental health issues is seeking public input.
European Medicines Agency Calls for Suspending Generic Forms of Four Common Psychiatric Drugs
The European Medicines Agency has called for the suspension of sales of many commonly used generic drugs, including at least four widely used psychiatric medications.
Quality of Relationship to Doctor Significantly Improves Antidepressant Efficacy
The more that patients feel that they have a high-quality relationship with their prescribing physician, the more likely that they will regard their own responses to antidepressants as positive.
Evidence Lacking for Antidepressant Safety in Nursing Mothers
A scientific review says we need to know much more about the risks of nursing mothers taking SSRIs.
Smoking Cessation Drug Suspected in 30 Suicides in Canada
The Pfizer drug has also been linked to more than 1,300 incidents of suicide attempts or thoughts, depression, and aggression/anger across the country in the past seven years.
