A BBC investigation this summer found that popular antidepressants like Prozac and Paxil (two of the most popular brand-name SSRIs) have been linked to at least 28 murders in the last three decades. The investigation also found that “murderous thoughts” are believed to be linked to the medication on 32 separate occasions.

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SSRI’s are a type of anti-depressant that boost levels of the chemical serotonin in our brains. While the vast majority of people can take these drugs with no problems, the information the BBC found says we need to look more at SSRI outcomes. In 2016, over 40 million prescriptions were made for the medication.

 

“Professor Peter Tyrer, psychiatrist at Imperial College London who has been studying SSRIs, said: ‘You can never be quite certain with a rare side-effect whether it’s linked to a drug or not because it could be related to other things.
But it’s happened just too frequently with this class of drug to make it random. It’s obviously related to the drug but we don’t know exactly why.’” 1

Tyrer called for the judicial system to take into account the possible effects of SSRIs in cases where those who have committed violent crimes are currently medicating with the drug.

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Pfizer, who developed an SSRI called sertraline, was quick to point out that a causal link between the drug and murderous behavior has yet to be proven. (Stay classy Pfizer.)

 

Sources and References

  1. Independent, July 25, 2017.