A psychiatrist provides an insider account on the controversial use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
Prozac. Paxil. Zoloft. Turn on your television and you are likely to see a commercial for one of the many selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) on the market. We hear a lot about them, but do we really understand how these drugs work and what risks are involved for anyone who uses them? Let Them Eat Prozac explores the history of SSRIs--from their early development to their latest marketing campaigns--and the controversies that surround them. Initially, they seemed like wonder drugs for those with mild to moderate depression. When Prozac was released in the late 1980s, David Healy was among the psychiatrists who prescribed it. But he soon observed that some of these patients became agitated and even attempted suicide. Could the new wonder drug actually be making patients worse? Healy draws on his own research and expertise to demonstrate the potential hazards associated with these drugs. He intersperses case histories with insider accounts of the research leading to the development and approval of SSRIs as a treatment for depression. Let Them Eat Prozac clearly demonstrates that the problems go much deeper than a side-effect of a particular drug. The pharmaceutical industry would like us to believe that SSRIs can safely treat depression, anxiety, and a host of other mental problems. But, as Let Them Eat Prozac reveals, this "cure" may be worse than the disease.Related Subjects
Clans Coming Of Age Courage Identity Crisis Loyalty Adventure 9 - 12 Years Action & Adventure Animals CatsThis world took a bad turn when Big Pharma decided to produce drugs for healthy people. Suddenly, all kinds of new complaints were invented, together with miraculous pills that were supposed to treat them. Not to cure them, but to treat them... for life... That's why those drugs are called "lifestyle drugs". The list is long, and gets longer every day. Now we have pills to treat cholesterol, the biggest business of pharmaceutical...
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A book to read if somebody in your family is considering taking SSRI. Not so much to go agaisnt medical advice but to recognize subsequent side effect that would alert the family member to an untoward reaction from taking the medication. A good book to read also for physicians who are prescribing or seeing patients who take SSRIs. This book goes into many details , from case studies to marketing and legal issues concerning...
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Dr. David Healy's Let Them Eat Prozac is packed with painstakingly referenced information. The book is deceptively panoramic in scope, ranging from ghost written article/adverts in medical journals masquerading as science, to how the line between the psychiatric community and the pharmaceutical industry has become increasingly blurred. Healy diligently documents how society has been inundated with information regarding the...
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Dr. Healy is a proponent of drug use for patients with depression or other disorders. When a drug calms a person down or energizes her - in a good way - he says "that's a good drug for that person". He has been a leading figure in psychopharmacology for many years, in part because of sponsorship by drug companies. He has a great deal of experience prescribing Prozac, Zoloft, and other antidepressants for a variety of conditions...
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Having been a pharmacist for 24 yrs I can say with depressing certainty that MDs have absolutely minimal understanding of the drugs they prescribe. They receive only the barest instruction in pharmacology in med school, and the majority of their ongoing drug education seems to come from pharmaceutical reps. This book just further validates observations I have already made about the side effects of Prozac and its cousins...
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