Scientists warn that antidepressants increase the risk of suicide while also giving people the means to do so.
Psychologists at the University of East London (UEL) analyzed media coverage of nearly 8,000 coroner inquests in England and Wales between 2003 and 2020, in which antidepressants were mentioned. it was done.
They found that the drug was associated with 2,718 hangings and 2,329 overdoses, 933 of whom had overdosed on antidepressants themselves.
A further 2,083 people were killed by being hit by trains, subways, trucks or other vehicles, jumping or falling, drowning, shooting themselves, being caught in fires or being electrocuted.
Experts say the figure is likely just the tip of the iceberg, as many suicides and inquests go unreported in the media.
Study author Dr John Reid, Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of East London, said:
The study, which will be published in the journal Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, concludes, “If your goal is to prevent suicide, you’re clearly not working for thousands of people.”
Significant increase in usage
Antidepressant prescriptions have increased significantly in recent decades, with 83.4 million prescriptions issued to 8.3 million people in the UK in 2021/22, a 5% increase on the previous year.
This means that about 1 in 6 adults in the adult population takes antidepressants each year.
In recent years, there has been increasing evidence of an association with suicide. In 2018, Professor Reed surveyed about 1,500 people taking antidepressants and found that 50% reported suicidal thoughts after starting antidepressants and 60% reported a decrease in positive emotions. I discovered that it states that I noticed.
An additional 70% said the drug made them feel apathetic and emotionally numb.
Marion Brown, a private psychotherapist, said:
“The effect of drugs is that people realize that they can think of nothing but to end their lives.”
increased suicidal ideation
Randomized controlled trials have shown an increase in suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among young people under the age of 24 taking antidepressants compared to those receiving placebo.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are now issuing warnings that they may increase suicidal tendencies in people under the age of 25, but some studies show that risk affects all age groups. suggesting that it is included.
New findings showed that the majority of overdoses were caused by SSRIs such as citalopram and fluoxetine, and tricyclics such as amitriptyline and dothiepin.
Prozac is now off-patent, but the original manufacturer, Eli Lilly, has paid more than $50 million (£40.5 million) in lawsuits relating to murder and suicide linked to the drug. Forest Laboratories also settled a suicide lawsuit involving citalopram (Celexa), which is also now out of patent. Amitriptyline and dothiepin are also currently off-patent and are marketed as generics.
unintended consequences
Dr Mark Horowitz, Psychiatry Clinical Research Fellow, NE London NHS Foundation Trust, said: ”
The inquest report was collected by the Antidepaware website, set up to monitor antidepressant-related deaths by an anonymous father whose son committed suicide after being prescribed citalopram.
The father, who requested anonymity, said: “This list is far from complete.
“Every inquest report I could have included had toxicology completely left out of the report, or drugs were hidden behind phrases like ‘She sought help for depression.’ There was at least another report that
Recent studies have also questioned the benefits of antidepressants.
Last year, University College London (UCL) argued that depression is not caused by chemical imbalances in serotonin, but rather by life events.
