By the author of Be Ready for Anything and the online course Bloom Where You’re Planted
It would be difficult to overlook the epidemic of depression that has struck the United States over the past decades. The CDC recently found that death by suicide was up more than 30% and the use of antidepressants has vaulted 65% in the past 15 years.
There are many different theories about this increase. Everything from internet addiction to the Trump presidency to environmental causes has been blamed. Some believe it’s always been like this but that the stigma has lessened and more people are getting help.
But now there’s one more possible cause that needs to be considered. New research has shown that more than 200 medications, both prescription and over-the-counter, can increase the likelihood of depression and depressive symptoms. And when two or more of these drugs are combined, the potential for depression increases even more.
And that isn’t the end of the bad news. More than 1 in 3 Americans regularly take a medication linked to an increase in depression. Common treatments such as proton pump inhibitors (for acid reflux), beta blockers, anxiety medications, OTC painkillers, ACE inhibitors (for high blood pressure) and anticonvulsant medications can cause or increase depression.
Are you taking any of these medications linked to depression?
Here’s the full list as per the study on JAMA.
These drugs can cause suicidal symptoms:
- Analgesics (Acetaminophen/Tramadol, Hydropmorphone, Tapentadol, Tramadol)
- Anticonvulsants (Carbamazepine, Clonazepam, Diazepam, Ethosuximide, Gabapentin, Lamotrigine, Levetiracetam, Lorazepam, Methsuximide, Oxcarbazepine, Phenytoin, Pregabalin, Topiramate, Valproic Acid, Zonisamide)
- Antidepressants (Amitriptyline, Amitriptyline/Chlordiazepoxide, Amitriptyline/Perphenazine, Bupropion, Citalopram, Clomipramine, Desipramine, Desvenlafaxine, Doxepin, Duloxetine, Escitalopram, Fluoxetine, Fluoxetine/Olanzapine, Fluvoxamine, Imipramine, Milnacipran, Mirtazapine, Nefazodone, Nortriptyline,
Paroxetine, Phenelzine, Protriptyline, Selegiline, Sertraline, Trazodone, Venlafaxine, Vilazodone) - Anxiolytics, Hypnotics, and Sedatives (Alprazolam, Butabarbital, Chlordiazepoxide, Clonazepam, Clorazepate, Diazepam, Doxepin, Eszopiclone, Flurazepam, Pentobarbital, Ramelteon, Triazolam, Zaleplon, Zolpidem)
- Gastrointestinal Agents (Metoclopramide)
- Hormones/Hormone Modifiers (Finasteride1, Leuprolide, Levonorgestrel, Oxandrolonez, Progesterone)
- Respiratory Agents (Montelukast, Ribavirin, Roflumilast, Zafirlukastg)
- Other Therapeutic Classes (Acamprosate, Amantadine, Armodafinil, Aripiprazole, Asenapine, Atomoxetine, Carbidopa/Entacapone/Levodopa, Carbidopa/Levodopa, Ciprofloxacin, Dapsone, Efavirenz, Efavirenz/Emtricitabine/Tenofovir, lloperidone, Interferon Beta-1a, Interferon Beta-1b, Isotretinoin,
Lurasidone, Memantine, Mefloquine, Methylphenidate, Modafinil, Moxifloxacin, Naltrexone, Natalizumab, Olanzapine, Ofloxacin, Peginterferon Alfa-2a, Quetiapine, Raltegravir, Risperidone4, Rivastigmine5, Sibutramine, Tetrabenazine, Varenicline)
These drugs can cause non-suicidal, depressive symptoms:
- Analgesics (Cyclobenzaprine, Fentanyl, Acetaminophen/Hydrocodone, Ibuprofen, Indomethacin, Morphine, Nabumetone, Oxycodone)
- Antihypertensives (Atenolol, Atenolol/Chlorthalidone, Betaxolol, Bendroflumethiazide/Nadolol, Brimonidine, Brimonidine/Timolol, Dorzolamide/Timolol, Enalapril, HydrochIorothiazide/Metoprolol, Hydrocodone, Metolazone, Metoprolol, Nisoldipine, Quinapril, Telmisartan, Timolol, Trandolapril)
- Corticosteroids (Betamethasone, Cortisone, Dexamethasone, Methylprednisolone, Prednisolone, Prednisone, Triamcinolone)
- Gastrointestinal Agents (Atropine/Diphenoxylate, Cimetidine, Dexlansoprazole, Esomeprazole, Famotidine, Omeprazole, Ranitidine)
- Hormones/Hormone Modifiers (Anastrozole, Bicalutamide, Cabergoline, Conjugated Estrogens, Conjugated Estrogens/Medroxyprogesterone, Desogestrel/Ethinyl Estradiol, Dienogest/Estradiol, Drospirenone/Ethinyl Estradiol, Drospirenone/Ethinyl Estradiol/Levomefolate, Esterified Estrogens, Esterified Estrogens/MethyItestosterone, Estradiol, Estradiol/Norethindrone, Estropipate, Ethinyl Estradiol/Ethynodiol, Ethinyl Estradiol/Etonogestrel, Ethinyl Estradiol/Levonorgestrel, Ethinyl Estradiol/Norethindrone, Ethinyl Estradiol/Norgestimate, Ethinyl Estradiol/Norgestrel, Etonogestrel, Exemestane, Goserelin, Hydroxyprogesterone, Medroxtyprogesterone, Megestrol, Norethindrone, Tamoxifen, Testosterone)
- Respiratory Agents (Cetirizine )
- Other Therapeutic Classes (Abacavir/Lamivudine, Acebutolol, Acitretin, Amphetamine/Detroamphetamine, Baclofen, Benzphetamine, Cinacalcet, Clonidine, Cyclosporine, Dantrolene, Dexmethylphenidate, Donepezil, Dronabinol, Emtricitabine, Erlotinib, Flecainide, Fluphenazine7, Galantamine, Haloperidol, Maraviroc, Methyldopa, Metolazone, Metronidazole, Oxybutynins, Phentermineg, Pimozide, Prazosin, Propafenone, Propranolol, Rasagiline, Rotigotine, Sorafenib, Tizanidine)
Depression can be misunderstood.
Depression is a debilitating mental illness that can’t be conquered by “cheering up,” “thinking positively,” or “just pushing through it.” For people who suffer from it, it can be life-threatening.
If you think you may have depression, you can get help from a variety of organizations out there who offer therapy and medical care regardless of your income. Some people can get better with various types of therapy, while others actually do need medication. While I believe that antidepressants are widely overprescribed, there’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that some people benefit from them.
If you are taking any of the prescription medications on the list above and dealing with depression, it’s important not to simply stop taking your meds, especially those which are prescribed to manage life-threatening conditions. However, if you believe that your medications are exacerbating your mental health issues, you should make an appointment to discuss other options with your physician.
If you are taking over the counter medications that have been shown to worsen depression, consider searching for other options to treat ailments such as mild pain, acid reflux, or indigestion.
Incidentally, this is quite a money maker for Big Pharma.
This correlation is not without its benefits for pharmaceutical companies. Pulitzer Prize nominee and investigative journalist Jon Rappoport has been sounding the warning for years. Of the links between these medications and depression, he writes:
Hundreds of meds causing depression have produced a $$ bonanza for the psychiatric drug business: THOSE drugs OVER THERE cause depression; THESE drugs HERE treat it.
Of course, the SSRI antidepressants (e.g., Paxil, Zoloft) contain warnings about suicidal effects—because they, too, cause depression. And my readers know I’ve been presenting evidence for years about the ability of antidepressants to cause people to commit violence, including murder.
This is quite a “situation.” Hundreds of ordinary meds bring on depression. Doctors then prescribe antidepressants, which can deepen depression and push people into suicide and homicide…
…When I label this overall operation chemical warfare against the population, I’m not exaggerating. (source)
He’s not wrong, you know. While we certainly can’t prove that these things are done deliberately as a horrifying, never-ending pyramid scheme, we can’t prove that it was just some kind of financially lucrative coincidence either.
There are truly miraculous medications out there that save lives which would have otherwise been lost far too soon, but there is also a slippery slope.
It’s more important than ever to do your own research and be aware of possible side effects from prescribed medications. With the internet, this is far easier than it was decades ago. We can’t just hand over the full burden for our health over to others – we have an obligation to ourselves and our families to take some responsibility.
i note you list antidepressants as implicated in causing or worsening depression. that is certainly true for a small percentage of patients. that’s why this affect is listed on the label. the greatest likelihood of adverse effects occurs at the beginning of treatment. start even slower than is recommended.
it is a paradoxical effect common to other classes of drugs as well. think about ritalin and other drugs to treat hyperkinetic kids. ritalin is a cousin to speed, and yet for some people, it acts to slow them down. there are people who take opiates to stop their hallucinations…another paradoxical effect.
there are potential problems with most medications. these must be weighed against the problems of not treating. even the herbals we love have problems. fox glove, source of digitalis for heart ailments can kill. because of the variation in potency from leaf to leaf, flower to flower, root to root, the 3 leaves granny made into tea yesterday as her tonic, might kill her today. it happens. take time to learn side effects and antidotes for anything you ingest.
You said:
Which has pretty much been the standard reply the past 3 decades. One big pharmaceutical company however, is notorious for having committed scientific fraud with their own research revealing that about 10% of younger patients on paroxetine (Seroxat in Europe, Paxil in the US) got suicidal/homicidal on their drug.
Guess what happened when healthy volunteers were put on the same drug? Yep, again the same proportion got suicidal. Same rate of suicidal events when anticonvulsants are prescribed for migraine patients. In antipsychotic trials the rate of suicidal events has been the same, regardless of indication.
Just check “Study 329”. It’s even in the BMJ. And as for the label, GSK was forced to alter their label after they were fined a whopping 3 BILLION in 2012 (biggest fine in corporate history) for burying the deadly truth about their SSRI drug, driving a subset of patients to suicide or even homicide (think school shootings here).
We already knew these drugs were not effective beyond placebo. Now we know that they’re deadly.
Best from Amsterdam,
Richard
Too funny. Pretty much everything, huh? Get outta here! How did I end up reading this nonsense?
Have you considered the effects of statins? The brain in around 75% cholesterol. Lowering cholesterol levels caused my partner’s Parkinson’s disease. His symptoms started a couple of weeks after he started taking them. Wasn’t diagnosed for another year, until the symptoms became more pronounced.
Many who go off statins have at least a partial reversal of symptoms. Unfortunately my partner is not in this group. He’s in constant pain. That definitely causes depression!
STAY AWAY FROM STATINS!
I took a Soma Compound (Carisoprodol/Asprin) several years ago for what the “physician” said was “pulled muscles” in my back. (He never did any urinalysis or other tests, just put his hand on my back and said I had pulled muscles.) It caused some severe depression for me….after ONE DOSE. Needless to say, that was the ONLY dose I took. It took me two weeks or more to get back to my “old self”. That was a bad med for me. And at the time, the medication information sheet that came with it said that DEPRESSION was a possible side effect. I have bad experiences with Big Pharma medicines, and prefer Mother Nature’s offerings whenever I can.
Great article. Medications, used correctly, can help quite a bit – just as certain natural herbs, when used correctly. Overuse of either can be very problematic. Natural does not equal good, and allopathic medicine does not necessarily equal bad. (Not aiming this first part at you, Daisy, you already get it.)
There’s a way that antidepressants can cause harm that wasn’t mentioned above. Sometimes they can cause suicidal behavior because they are working CORRECTLY! As it was explained to me, sometimes a depressed person just won’t have the will or energy to do anything about how bad they feel, and when the medication starts to take effect then it becomes more possible for them to do things, including harmful ones.
Does this mean not to take antidepressants or other medications? No, but as another reader said, it is a patients responsibility to try to understand as much as they can about what is going into their body. Also, self knowledge can truly save lives.
Oh, and I agree on the statins. They also can have some serious effects on your muscles. I won’t be taking them. (Worked at a pharmacy for 7 years.)
I concur with this information. My wife’s daughter has been taking anti-depressants and other psychotropic drugs since the age of 14. (Now 27). She has attempted suicide on several occasions and is quite hostile. My mother always said “The cure is worse than the disease.” The daughter does not work, no insurance and just lays around the house. My wife is at her wits end… Now she takes antidepressants. I am drug-free and I can see how these meds affect behavior.
Sue the pharmaceutical company. A man in the Netherlands just won a court case over the suicidal damage done by SSRI drugs, prescribed since he was about your (wife’s) daughter’s age.
Thank you Richard, but I am not allowed to intervene in my wife’s daughters life. I can only watch this tragic drama to play out. ‘Tis a pity.
FYI: one general mechanism of action that many of these pharmaceutical drugs have in common is that they deplete B-vitamins from the body, especially B6/B12.
Look at the symptoms of B6/B12 deficiency: bingo. Kids who suffered from this severe aggressive/suicidal behaviour while on AEDs were given B-supplements and the “side-effects” of the drugs either lessened markedly or disappeared completely.