On December 29, 1987 Prozac was approved by the FDA. I was 12 years old at the time and one of the first children to be put on this medication. Despite an initial feeling of relief, the results were short lived and came with nasty side effects that led me to discontinue it.

I would suffer for another 20 years before finally figuring out the root causes of my severe depression and often suicidal ideation. A combination of two little known conditions: copper toxicity and undermethylation, both of which have a profound affect on thinking, feeling, and behavior. I was able to treat these conditions with nutrient and dietary therapy, which saved my life.

To learn more about both of these conditions and the other chemistries I work with in my clinic, please listen to Episode 2 How Nutrient Deficiencies and Overloads Impact the Brain and Body. I also have many free articles here on my website that provide a deep-dive into how they impact us in so many ways.

This is a very important and personal episode for me because depression and mental illness continue to rise despite all the drugs available today to treat them. Drugs that don't and never did have the necessary safety studies to ascertain their validity.

In fact, a historical review of the scientific literature reveals how antidepressants and other psychotropic drugs, over the long term, increase the risk that a person will become chronically depressed and functionally impaired, which correlates with what we are seeing worldwide.

Today I'm talking with founder and president of the Mad In America Foundation, Robert (Bob) Whitaker, to discuss the history and effects of psychotropic drugs.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The history of psychiatric drugs
• The skyrocketing number of people disabled by mental illness
• How industry-funded randomized clinical trials are always biased in favor of the drug
• Who benefits from the distribution and use of psychiatric drugs
• How psychotropic drugs (including SSRIs, stimulants such as Ritalin, and benzodiazepines) affect the brain

Click here to read the full transcript along with links to Bob's website, books, and research.