The Nuance
Are Antidepressants Really Better Than Placebos?
It’s a question that has fueled an ongoing debate among researchers, doctors, and patients
Every week, the Nuance will go beyond the basics, offering a deep and researched look at the latest science and expert insights on a buzzed-about health topic.
Roughly one in eight Americans older than 12 is on antidepressants, and a quarter of the people who take these drugs have done so for more than 10 years. That’s according to some of the most recent mental health data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Considering that tens of millions of Americans are now taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and other antidepressants, one would reasonably expect that their efficacy has been proved beyond all doubt. But experts who study antidepressants are still debating whether they’re superior to placebos.
“There is data on both sides,” says Michelle Newman, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at the Pennsylvania State University and director of PSU’s Laboratory for Anxiety and Depression Research.
A research review published earlier this year in the Lancet concluded that the 21 antidepressants it analyzed significantly outperformed a placebo. While…
