Now the most commonly taken prescription drug in adults under 45, researchers find.
HealthDay News
By Robert Preidt
19 Oct 11
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 19 (HealthDay News) — The rate of antidepressant use among Americans of all ages increased nearly 400 percent over the last two decades, and 11 percent of Americans aged 12 and older now take antidepressant drugs, according to a federal government report released Wednesday.
The analysis of 2005-2008 data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys also showed that antidepressants are the third most common prescription drug taken by Americans of all ages and the most frequently used by those aged 18 to 44.
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In addition to these findings, the researchers reported that women are 2.5 times more likely to take antidepressants than men and 23 percent of women aged 40 to 59 take antidepressants, more than in any other age/sex group.
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About 8 percent of Americans aged 12 and older without current depressive symptoms took antidepressants. This may include those taking the drugs for reasons other than depression and those taking the drugs for depression who are being treated successfully and do not currently have depressive symptoms, Laura Pratt and colleagues at the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics explained in the October NCHS Data Brief.
http://www.everydayhealth.com/depres..._lnk1%7C105691
