Saturday, August 17, 2013

Antipsychotic medication and physical ill health



I know that I have written quite a few posts on the subject of mental health principally because this is a very important issue which, despite what psychiatrists and psychologists tell us, is little understood. For this reason it has been sidelined by mainstream health and welfare authorities in all countries and by politicians of all persuasions for many years. Mental health problems cannot, ever, be “cured” by drugs alone – in fact antipsychotic and antideressant drugs are not as effective as “big Pharma” would like us to believe.  [I read somewhere (source unknown) that one can hardly prescribe drugs without knowing what is wrong with the patient - and that requires the delivery of a diagnosis – but diagnosis  in mental health is fraught.]

The efficacy of current "cures" with a reliance on drugs is an important question that is more often than not ducked by “Health Professionals” and left unanswered. I am sure many others are as confused as I am by the secretive and sometimes unethical behaviour and the antics of the psycho-pharmacological “industry” and many of the professionals who administer these drugs to the unsuspecting public. There is, however, a great deal of information available, that is both alarming and illuminating, if one is prepared to dig around.

For instance there is quite surprising information in the 2012 report of the Australian National Mental Health Commission. Their finding regarding antipsychotic medications is most concerning. According to the report:

“…. there is little or no accountability as to what improvements we are getting for such a significant investment, whether it improves the health and well-being of people with a mental illness and provides them with the services they need.

Most Australians may not know that treatments with prescribed psychiatric drugs may lead to worse physical health. There are increased risks for some specific treatments such as antipsychotics and for those with underlying vulnerabilities such as diabetes. This can mean that the antipsychotic medications that are prescribed to manage severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, contribute to the risk of having severe physical illnesses.

The national survey of psychotic illness uncovered the extent of general health problems for people in this group:

  • ·Diabetes was at a rate over 3 times found in the general population.
  •  One third carried the risk of a ‘cardiovascular event’ within five years. 
  •  Half have metabolic syndrome, which is associated with an increased risk of  cardiovascular disease and diabetes as a side effect of prescribed antipsychotic medications. 
  • They have nearly twice the rate of being obesely overweight. 
  •  They smoke at a rate 2 to 3 times higher than the general population. 
  •  They have high blood cholesterol levels at 5 times the rate of the general population.
The Commissioners go on to state “These statistics mirror the burden of health difficulties endured by people living with mental health difficulties. It is evident that people with the most severe mental illness have a worse level of overall health than people with more common mental illnesses, which compounds the health difficulties they need to overcome.”

Furthermore the Commissioners state that “We need more research into the medications that treat mental illness and the significant side effects they have upon a person’s health. We need this research to develop best practices for managing and reducing metabolic side-effects (such as weight gain, increased risk of diabetes and heart problems) and assessing what approaches work best with the people who rely upon these medications to sustain their mental health.”

The World Psychiatric Association reported in 2008 that an estimate of the mean weight gain in patients receiving standard doses of antipsychotics over a 10-week period was quite significant: the mean increases were 4.45 kg (about 10 pounds) with clozapine, 4.15 kg (about 9.5 pounds) with olanzapine, 2.92 kg (about 6.5 pounds) with sertindole, 2.10 kg  (about 4.5 pounds) with risperidone, and 0.04 kg (about 2 ounces) with ziprasidone.

Interesting. I wonder why this information is not widely disseminated?