There is reasonable evidence that (a) antidepressants are no more effective than placebos in treating the symptoms of depression and (b) that an imbalance of serotonin is not the cause of depression (the basis on which antidepressants are said to work). A recent article in New Scientist (Wilson 2016) posed the question: if the above is true then why are people still taking them?
Wilson offers three possible answers. One possibility is that doctors keep prescribing these drugs because they feel there is not much else they can offer to a patient who is feeling hopeless and helpless.
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