Or, The Chemical Imbalance Lie!

In 2006 and 2007 there were some surveys done showing that 80% or more of the people surveyed considered the theory of chemical imbalance in the brain as fact.  

If you want to read a lengthy article on how this fallacious idea came to be, read this article    Psychiatry Under the Influence

By survey in 2006, 80% of Americans believed that a chemical imbalance in the brain is what causes depression.  Ronald Pies calls this concept, an urban legend. 

“…in a 2007 survey of 262 undergraduates, psychologist Christopher M. France of Cleveland State University and his colleagues found that 84.7 percent of participants found it “likely” that chemical imbalances cause depression.”  - Scientific American

In my years of research, I have found no evidence, no white paper proving this theory.  Numerous psychiatrists, doctors and professors, etc., that actually work in the industry, have found no evidence to support this.  

“I don’t think there’s any convincing body of data that anybody has ever found that depression is associated, to a significant extent, with loss of serotonin.”  -Alan Frazer, University of Texas Health Science Center, 2012

“In truth, the chemical imbalance notion was always a kind of urban legend, never a theory seriously propounded by well-informed psychiatrists.” - Ronald Pies, July 11, 2011 in Psychiatric Times

“We have hunted for big simple neurochemical explanations for psychiatric disorders and have not found them.” Kenneth Kendler, Psychological Medicine, 2005

In an article in Deadly Medicines and Organized Crime, Dr Peter Groeche talks about the myth of the chemical imbalance:

The Harmful Myth About the Chemical Imbalance Causing Psychiatric Disorders

“It has never been possible to show that common mental disorders start with a chemical imbalance in the brain. The studies that have claimed this are all unreliable.” Prof. Peter C. Gøtzsche, June 28, 2019

In this article Professor Gøtzche points out that at least one psychiatrist claimed, when being interviewed that the profession no longer stood by the theory of the ‘chemical imbalance of the brain’ causing depression or other issues.  And some weeks later this same doctor lectured about ‘chemical imbalances’.  Hmmm!?

“It is a lie that you have a biochemical imbalance and that psychiatric drugs will rebalance your brain. It was a marketing ploy not based upon science. It was designed to sell drugs and it has worked all too well.” Dr Kim West

For example, Pfizer’s television advertisement, years ago for Zoloft states that “depression is a serious medical condition that may be due to a chemical imbalance”, and that “Zoloft works to correct this imbalance.” (This video is easily found on Youtube if you would like to check it out.)

The ‘original’ Zoloft ad, I think seen at a Super Bowl, promoted the drug for depression claiming that it corrected an imbalance of chemicals between nerve endings.  There is absolutely no science behind this claim.  Another statement that is made in the ad is that Zoloft is not habit forming.  If this last statement were even close to the truth, there would not be any number of websites telling how to come off this and other types of drugs.  And how difficult it is to do!

I’m not sure if Pfizer was ever held accountable for the lies told in that Television ad.  Sad.  So, can a pharmaceutical company like Pfizer get away with blatant lies in their advertising?  I guess so!

If you or one you love or know is on a drug like Zoloft and wants to stop, then please read through the material at this link first.  VERY IMPORTANT 

The article references Dr Peter Breggin’s method for coming of these drugs.  He suggests coming off at increments of 10%.  Some doctors will suggest 1% increments for certain drugs. So much for the statement that drugs like Zoloft aren’t addictive. 

Here is a great, short video by UCLA Professor David Cohen, PhD.  Titled ‘Sadness Is Not a Brain Disorder’

You can do your own homework but here is a list of Doctors, professors, psychiatrists and scientists and their opinion of the Myth of Chemical Imbalance in the Brain:

“The spurious chemical imbalance theory of depression is arguably the most destructive thing that psychiatry has ever done.” By Philip Hickey, PhD  

Where is it Going? https://www.madinamerica.com/2020/02/chemical-imbalance-theory-going/

“To this day, there exists not a single biological test for any mental disorder, despite claims to the contrary.” -Mark L. Ruffalo

"However, there is one (rather large) problem with this theory: there is absolutely no evidence to support it.[Chemical imbalance in the brain] Recent reviews of the research have demonstrated no link between depression, or any other mental disorder, and an imbalance of chemicals in the brain." (Lacasse & Leo, 2005; (Valenstein, 1998).

“There’s no biological imbalance. When people come to me and they say, ‘I have a biological imbalance,’ I say, ‘Show me your lab tests.’ There are no lab tests. So what’s the biochemical imbalance?” —Dr. Ron Leifer, New York psychiatrist.

“If a psychiatrist says you have a shortage of a chemical, ask for a blood test and watch the psychiatrist’s reaction. The number of people who believe that scientists have proven that depressed people have low serotonin is a glorious testament to the power of marketing.”
- Jonathan Leo, Western University of Health Sciences

“First, no biological etiology [cause] has been proven for any psychiatric disorder...in spite of decades of research....So don’t accept the myth that we can make an ‘accurate diagnosis’....Neither should you believe that your problems are due solely to a ‘chemical imbalance.’”
- Edward Drummond, M.D

“Remember that no biochemical, neurological, or genetic markers have been found for attention deficit disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, depression, schizophrenia, anxiety, compulsive alcohol and drug abuse, overeating, gambling, or any other so‐called mental illness, disease, or disorder.” - Bruce Levine, Ph.D/Psychologist

“Biopsychiatrists have created the myth that psychiatric ‘wonder’ drugs correct chemical imbalances. Yet there is no basis for this model because no chemical imbalance has ever been proven to be the basis of a mental illness,” -  Ty C. Colbert, Psychologist.