Further to the earlier post on child and infant health in America, it seems to The Green Man that illicit drugs are a small problem for American children when compared to prescription drugs. The Daily News Transcript reports that 11 million American children are on some form of antidepressant drug, this is out of a population of 50 million children. That is 22% of all American children and adolescents.

Just to fill you in on what these drugs are:

Antidepressants are psychotropic drugs used primarily in the treatment of major depressive disorder, dysthymic disorder, and otherwise unnamed depressive disorders. . . They are also used in treating patients with certain types of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit disorder, and some personality disorders. Types of antidepressants include tricyclics, such as Norpramin and Etrafon; monoamine oxidase inhibitor agents (MAOIs), such as Nardil and Parnate; selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil; and miscellaneous antidepressants, such as Wellbutrin, Serzone, and Effexor. (source CDC)

Of particular interest are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as Prozac, Zoloft. These are the drug of choice for most American parents who are medicating their depressed children. It is not unreasonable to suggest that many depressed individuals, both child and adult, have had suicidal thoughts and as Dr. Michael Jellinek, chief of child psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital quaintly observes

Antidepressants can also, in what is typically a positive effect, restore the ability to take action by making patients feel energized, another trigger that could move depressed people to kill themselves. If you have suicidal ideation, that ability to be more active also means you could be more active in trying to hurt yourself.

It may be stating the obvious but there other approaches to the treatment of depression than medication. Naturally medication has its place however, when that medication leads to a 2-3% increase in the chances of having suicidal thoughts, it would seem obvious that a degree of caution and restraint should be used.

This rate of medication of children in the USA is unnaturally high and it suggests either:

1. If children globally suffer depression at this rate, then other societies are coping with this problem in other ways rather than overmedicating their children.

2. If the level of depression in US children is unnaturally high then there is something fundamentally wrong with the structure of the American society.

Probably it is a little bit of both. It is a complex problem with no simple solution however one simple step is available to all parents that costs very little - EXERCISE. The American Heart Association observes that the 1996 U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Public Health found that, compared with inactive people, the physically active had higher scores for positive self-concept, more self-esteem and more positive "moods" and "affects."

Don't go to the gym, take your kids on a walk in the forest, go fishing, fly a kite. If you have a garden give them a corner to start their own vegitable patch and help them dig it over and plant the seeds/seedlings.

The quick fix is medication and it is easy. The slow fix is a more healthy and loving lifestyle and it is hard. This time do not take the easy path.