Drug regulator thinks it’s reasonable to mislead people about chemical imbalance in depression

In a reply to a letter from Peter Gøtzsche, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has made clear that it has no current plans to remove the references to chemical imbalance in the Patient Information Leaflets (PILs) of antidepressants (see reply). A previous reply to a freedom of information request has helped to clarify the history of the introduction of this term into such PILs.

The chemical imbalance theory of depression has never been more than a hypothesis (see eg. previous post). The trouble with MHRA maintaining its position is that it gives credence to the idea that the hypothesis has been proven, which is clearly not the case. It seems willing to let people be misled about the nature of depression. Its bias in promoting antidepressants needs to be exposed.

Easy solutions to psychological problems?

Psychological problems are common. People don't always adjust to difficulties in life and relationships very well. They don't always meet their own or others' expectations of how they should function socially.

Solutions on offer to psychological problems from mental health services, such as psychotropic medication and talking therapy, may, therefore, seem attractive. This can mean that the limits to treatment are not always acknowledged or recognised. Wishful thinking can be powerful and self-fulfilling.

The trouble is that this situation means that providing increasing resources for mental health services can never meet the perceived need of the population  (see eg. my BMJ article with corrections - see previous post). Psychological problems are real and the role of mental health services is to respond to them and provide care until normal social roles can be resumed. No wonder mental health services are in difficulty if they think that panaceas to mental health problems are the answer (see eg. another previous post).