"Depression not caused by Chemical Imbalance"

Any opinions on this article?

Depression Not Caused by Chemical Imbalance by Dr. Mercola

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/a...epression.aspx

This dude is a quack - google “Mercola quack” and you’ll get a ton of information. My late elderly father in law used to get all his crap in the mail. Dr. Sinatra was another one! Being confused and vulnerable, my husband took complete control of dad’s affairs and this garbage went right into the recycling bin.

The thing is that big Pharma would try to discredit someone like this. If what he says is true then the drug companies would lose millions of dollars. I guess anything on the internet can be "what if'ed" I just try to keep an open mind about such things. I feel like people are over medicated for the most part though.

Check this out. Make sure you get your information from a reputable source!
Neuroscience. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2014 Aug 29.
Published in final edited form as:
Neuroscience. 2013 Aug 29; 246: 199–229.
Published online 2013 May 3. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2013.04.060
PMCID: PMC3741070
NIHMSID: NIHMS487915
Inflammatory Cytokines in Depression: Neurobiological Mechanisms and Therapeutic Implications
Jennifer C. Felger1 and Francis E. Lotrich2
Author information ► Copyright and License information ►

Your point?

i dont think there's proof that depression or any other "mental illness" is a biologically-rooted entity. that might explain why "antidepressants" (the term itself is misleading...) tend to beat placebo a good bit in severe depression, but often fail to outperform placebo in mild to moderate depression.

maybe im just yet another disillusioned (bitter? LOL) "patient," but...you go to 2 psychiatrists, you get 3 diagnoses. "treatment" is all over the map. you have people with "bipolar" on stimulants, people "ADD" on antipsychotics, its...a hot mess, and its damaged a lot of people, too.

on a practical level...i find that my "problems" are a lot easier to deal with on 2 carefully selected, reasonably dosed psych drugs...for now. i also take tons of supplements, im trying to eat better and exercise more, and im getting the psychosocial stuff under control.

im not saying 'dont take the psych drugs!,' but i am saying...whoa. everybody and their mama is on something, and very few people seem to get 'better' from 'standard treatment.'

There's a lot of holes, over-generalizations and chicken-egg-conclusions in the article.

Also, the debunkers of the chemical imbalance theory always work from the presumption that everyone in every situation needs the same amount of chemicals, neurotransmitters etc. I think it's possible that people with depression simply need more of them, and that is why the meds (can) improve mood. But I'm no neurologist.

[QUOTE=Trace14;5988128]The thing is that big Pharma would try to discredit someone like this. If what he says is true then the drug companies would lose millions of dollars. I guess anything on the internet can be "what if'ed" I just try to keep an open mind about such things. I feel like people are over medicated for the most part though.[/QUOT

You asked about him and I gave you my opinion...dude is a quack.

I agree with people being overmedicated...yet this dude is still a quack.

I stop taking meds 5 years ago as the side effects were too much. So far I have managed without them.

My opinion about meds is that if they help and the side effects aren't too bad then take them. If they don't help or the side effects are too bothersome then don't take them. But don't try to make other people feel guilty for making another choice. I agree that Dr. Mercola is kind of a quack. I wouldn't base any of my treatment decisions on his opinion, but if others want to then they should do so. Unless it doesn't work...and then they should consider something else.

Maybe it is possible for a person to be off the beam in one area but closer to the truth in others.

[QUOTE=SMRY;5989090]His treatment suggestions are scientifically based and more importantly good for your overall health. This article, like any article, isn’t to be taken as the complete truth. Take what you are presented and compare it to your knowledge and experience. There is nothing here that stands out to me as being quacky at all.

Most psychiatry is quackery (or at best an early stage science)

and both sides of the chemical imbalance argument tend to make huge assumptions about causality and be fraught with Cartesian dualist illogicalities

Yes I agree, and brain chemicals are involved some way or another. You have to remain cautious about antidepressants, personality change and long term withdrawal are real. I doubt I’ll ever be off antidepressants, I think I need them anyways, however I would have exhausted natural remedies first.