The Drugs Don't Work...

Lots of UK papers are leading today with a new report from the Psychology department at the University of Hull, which reviews around 50 studies carried out by pharmaceutical companies, both the studies they published, AND the ones they for some reason chose not to do.

The results are startling. Says The Times:

Millions of people taking commonly prescribed antidepressants such as Prozac and Seroxat might as well be taking a placebo, according to the first study to include unpublished evidence.

The new generation of antidepressant drugs work no better than a placebo for the majority of patients with mild or even severe depression, comprehensive research of clinical trials has found.

The researchers said that the drug was more effective than a placebo in severely depressed patients but that this was because of a decreased placebo effect.

The study, described as “fantastically important” by British experts, comes as the Government publishes plans to help people to manage depression without popping pills.

The really shocking thing is that the pharmaceutical companies should have done these reports and not published them. Some politicians and experts are now saying drug companies should be legally obliged to publish the results of all research studies, not just the ones that support their case...it reminds one of investment banks only publishing research that supports the deals they sell...

The report comes as GP prescriptions for anti-depressants like Prozac are hitting record levels.
This may be because GPs are not trained in emotional analysis, and do not always understand the alternatives to anti-depressants, such as CBT.