AntiDepressants Expert

The antidepressant paroxetine, found in Seroxat and Paxil, can damage men’s sperm and impair fertility, according to research published in the journal Fertility & Sterility.

“It’s fairly well known that SSRI antidepressants negatively impact erectile function and ejaculation,” said Dr Peter Schlegel, the study’s senior author and professor of reproductive medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York told the Chicago Tribune. “This study goes one step further, demonstrating that they can cause a major increase in genetic damage to sperm.”
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What do you do when you’re feeling blue? We all want to be happier, yet as a society depression is on the rise. As life coaches we believe each person has unique solutions to their problems. While antidepressants are the answer for some with clinical depression, others may seek natural methods in addition to or as an alternative to taking medication. While there is no cure-all for depression, there is research supporting several natural options that may help boost our minds as well as our spirits.

1. Get your hands in the dirt. Gardening has long been known for its meditative, relaxing, and grounding effects. Medical News Today reports that UK scientists have discovered friendly bacteria in soil that reportedly affects the brain in a way similar to antidepressants by increasing the release of serotonin. A great, easy to follow gardening guide is RHS Gardening Month by Month, by Ian Spence.
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Study of omega-3 supplements for major depression is the largest to date

Fish oil supplements significantly benefited patients who were depressed but not anxious in the largest trial of omega-3 supplements for depression to date.

According to results of the Omega-3D trial, reported at the 9th World Congress of Biological Psychiatry, fish oil improved depression levels as much as what is typically reported with pharmacologic treatments.

In the study, 432 patients with an episode of major depression were randomized to treatment with eicosapentenoic acid (EPA)—an omega-3 fatty acid found in fish oil— or matched placebo masked with fish odor. Taking 1050 mg per day of EPA for 8 weeks led to significantly better scores in the subgroup of patients with major depression without anxiety.
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Cross-sectional studies have reported an association between major depressive episode (MDE) and obesity. The objective of this longitudinal analysis was to determine whether MDE increase the risk of becoming obese over a 10-year period.

Data from the Canadian National Population Health Survey (NPHS) were used, a longitudinal study of a representative cohort of household residents in Canada. The incidence of obesity, defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 30, was evaluated in respondents who were 18 years or older at the time of a baseline interview in 1994. MDE was assessed using a brief diagnostic instrument.
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High-speed magnetic resonance imaging scans produce effects in rats similar to the use of antidepressants, confirming observations made in human patients, U.S. researchers reported on Thursday. The finding suggests that electromagnetic fields can affect brain biology, the team at McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School reported.

“We found that when we administered the magnetic stimulation to the rats, we saw an antidepressant-like effect, the same effect as seen after administration of standard antidepressant drugs,” said William Carlezon, director of McLean’s Behavioral Genetics Laboratory.

Writing in the journal Biological Psychiatry, Carlezon and colleagues said they tested the rats after another team at the hospital reported a new type of magnetic resonance imaging, called echo planar magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (EP-MRSI), had improved the mood of people in the depressed phase of bipolar disorder.
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