Pro-drugging study funded by Big Pharma

Be forewarned: A study that encourages drugging children has just been released, and the right-wing media is already parroting it.

This new study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, a government research organization, encourages pickling children's minds with heavy doses of the antidepressant Zoloft (sertraline) to control their anxiety. Isn't it nice to know our tax dollars are going to bogus reports encouraging forced druggings?

I'm reluctant to link to the AP piece, because it's so biased in favor of the drug, but the truth is buried in the article, one version of which appears here:

http://www.newsnet5.com/health/17850775/detail.html

The thirteenth paragraph tells us all we need to know: "Several study authors reported receiving consulting fees or other compensation from drug companies, including antidepressant makers."

You read that right: Big Pharma paid the government to produce a report favorable to its product. You can't get any more corporatist than that.

Of all the studies that show such drugs to be harmful, I've yet to see any that were funded by any corporation or outside pressure group. But the ones that "prove" these drugs to be helpful seem to almost always be funded by the drug makers - so it's clear that these studies work backwards from a predetermined conclusion.

Zoloft is linked to suicidal thoughts and behavior - as even the AP piece points out (though that part too is buried).

So the next time some shrink or other self-styled expert trots out this study to extol sertraline's greatness, point out to them that it was financed by the drug companies.