In a study done in 2006, it was statistically shown that 56% of all psychiatrists decide which disorders to list in the next Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders1. It was also proven in this study that psychiatrists and pharmaceutical corporations (Big Pharma) have financial ties. We can see the consequences today with the barrage of drugs that have been put on the market, with each drug targeted at an invented DSM “disorder.”
But what is the DSM? Better known as the DSM-IV, this manual is published by the American Psychiatric Association and covers all mental health disorders for both children and adults. The book is considered to be the “bible” for any professional who makes psychiatric diagnoses in the United States and other countries.2
According to admissions by psychologists, there is no proof that any of the diseases listed in the DSM manual even exist. No specific methods or tools can tell a psychiatrist whether a person has a mental disorder or not. There are no studies than can be done of tissue, body or matter to substantiate any claim that a person is mentally disabled. In fact, the categories are made up; they simply do not exist in nature.
In an effort to legitimize prescribing medication to their patients, psychiatrists are now using brain scans to show a “proof” of disease. Dr. Jay Lombard, who is a specialist in osteopathy, states that often people will come into his office asking for an MRI (magnetic resonance image) in order to verify if their child has a mental disorder. This is when Dr. Lombard must clarify that there are no tests in existence that can confirm a diagnosis for mental disease.
The psychologists also benefit from the profits of this industry. The pharmaceutical corporations contribute enormous sums of money for the education of psychiatric residents and for support for the research of their professors, so that psychiatry today in America has become largely the point of which drug(s) to use with which disease or disorder. With each new “disease” introduced by the DSM, there are many more drugs introduced into the market, that is why the pharmaceutical companies are so prosperous.
There is a factor of numbers involved here. Over 450 million people world-wide are officially diagnosed with mental disorders today3. This is a total of the populations of the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Australia and Russia combined4. This results in the fact that the sales of the psychotropic drugs top over $27 billion annually. Funding from world governments who have an interest in the expansion of psychiatry, (and the resulting financial benefits) gross over $440 billion dollars per year. Most of this comes from the diagnosing and treatment of our most vulnerable citizens; our children5.
The World Federation of Mental Health founders stated that the purpose behind psychiatry is social control. In 1950 for example, the American government proposed a revamping of the entire educational system. The plan was to use the school system as a huge “mental health clinic system” instead of institutions of learning. In 1965, the U.S. Education Act for Elementary and Secondary Education was passed. This law gave psychiatrists the green light to go into the education system and test children for mental dysfunction using manipulative techniques and subsequently, drug them with psychotropic medications.6
One example of the the U.S. Education Act was that a child is labeled with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or with an attention-deficit disorder (ADD) when they can’t sit still for more than ten minutes at a time, ignore the teacher or talk constantly. In 1987, the promotion of these two disorders by the pharmaceutical industry went into full swing, so that within a year more than 500,000 American children were diagnosed with ADHD.
By 1994, this number skyrocketed to 4.4 million7. This apparent epidemic of mental disease among children sparked concern in the eyes of the public and provoked a conference initiated by the U.S. Government funded National Institute of Health in 1998. They convened prominent psychiatrists and doctors from all over the U.S. to explain to parents and educators exactly what ADHD was.
David Kupfer, M.D., the chairman of the Consensus Conference Panel asked Dr. Mark Vonnegut to explain what ADHD entailed. Dr. Vonnegut could not coherently answer the question, even though he was both a licensed and practicing psychiatrist! David Kupfer concluded the debate, saying, “At this time, there is no established diagnosis for ADHD, therefore the validity of the disorder continues to be a problem.”8
In recent years, the United States has dropped to 28th in world-wide academic standing. The dumbing-down of our children continues. But what is the cause? In only the last couple years, the sale of ADHD-related drugs has multiplied 32 times!
This admission has not stopped school psychiatrists from diagnosing children with the disorder, with the numbers rising dramatically to 6 million in just a few years. Today, 20 million children world-wide are labeled with some form of learning disorder; a diagnosis often made within a few minutes9. The method used consists of conducting manipulative tests (such as TeenScreen) on the child for about five minutes, after which the psychiatrist gives a diagnosis and prescribes medication, all without really knowing if there is a problem.10
Ritalin is among the many psychotropic drugs listed as highly addictive substances by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. It falls under the same category as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine. This has led to drug-trafficking in the school yard, with children selling their personal medication (such as Ritalin) to their classmates for money.
Symptoms resulting from psychotropic drugs have been a cause of many disasters, especially within the school system. We will list here, several cases in which psychotropic drugs played a key role in the lives of innocent people. Official warnings, such as those issued by Health Canada and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, reveal that psychotropic drugs pose a real danger and are a precursor to violence and suicide.
In 1998, in the town of Springfield, Oregon, Kip Kinkel murdered his parents and afterwards, went to school and shot 22 people, killing 2 of them. He was in withdrawal from Prozac at the time. According to the testimony taken by Detective Al Warthen, he complained of hearing voices in his head and of having murderous thoughts. He even admitting to toying with the idea of committing suicide. An interesting factor in this case, was that the side-effects of Prozac were never even considered by his attending psychiatrists. Even after an extended length of time, side-effects from potent drugs such as Prozac still remain inside the body.
April 20, 1999: Columbine, Colorado: 18-year-old Eric Harris was on the antidepressant Luvox when he and his partner Dylan Klebold killed twelve classmates and a teacher before taking his own life in the bloodiest school massacre in history. The coroner confirmed that the antidepressant was in his system through the toxicology reports of Dylan Klebold’s autopsy was never made public.
March 7, 2000: Williamsport, Pennsylvania: 14-year-old Elizabeth Bush was on the antidepressant Prozac when she shot at fellow students, wounding one.
March 22, 2001: El Cajon, California: 18-year-old Jason Hoffman was on two antidepressants, Effexor and Celexa, when he opened fire at his California high school, wounding five people. Hoffman had also undergone an “anger management” program.
In 2001, Christopher Pittman killed his grandparents while taking Zoloft, an antidepressant that has the same side-effects as Prozac. His lawyers faulted the drug but a jury in Charleston, South Carolina, convicted him of murder in February. The prosecutors involved in the case said that antidepressants could not possibly have caused Christopher to kill his grandparents.
It is interesting to note that both Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline, (two of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world) paid a lawyer to be involved in this case.
On at least 15 prior occasions, attorneys discovered, Pfizer has provided a “Prosecutor’s Manual” or “Litigation Manual” to prosecutors so that they could overwhelm any defense lawyer who dared to raise the “involuntary intoxication” defense, (meaning a patient became violent due to prescribed anti-depressants).11
March 21, 2005: Red Lake Indian Reservation, Minnesota: 16-year-old Native American Jeff Weise, reportedly under the influence of the antidepressant Prozac, went on a shooting rampage at home and at his school, killing nine people and wounding five before committing suicide.
Dr. Thomas Moore, MD, with the Drug Safety Research group, conducted a study on the use of antidepressant drugs with children, which showed that in the 4 year period of 1998 to 2001, the use of SSRIs (Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) with children doubled and in 90% of the cases the drugs were prescribed off-label to kids for uses not approved by the FDA.12
According to a recent New York Times article, Dr. Frank Ochberg, a former associate director of the National Institute of Mental Health, said he once dismissed links between antidepressants and suicides or homicidal acts but that new research has changed his mind. “If your intention is shooting the place up and dying as you do it, you can put the fantasy together,” he said.13
Colonel J.R. Rees, who was the President of the National Council for Mental Hygiene stated, “We must aim to make it [psychiatry] permeate every educational activity in our national life. Public life, politics and industry should all of them be within our sphere of influence.”14
“To achieve world government it is necessary to remove from the minds of men their individualism, loyalty to family traditions, national patriotism and religious dogmas,” advocated G. Brock Chisholm, who was the co-founder of the World Federation for Mental Health.
Haldol, Prolixin, Thorazine, Mellaril, Stelazine, Vesprin, Clozaril, Navane, Trilfon, Tindal, Taractan, and Compazine
Tofranil, Elavil, Adapin, Surmontil, Norpramin, Pamelor, Aventyl, Vivactil, and Anafranil
Asendin, Ludiomil, Desyrel, and Wellbutrin
Marplan, Nardil, Parnate, Eldepryl, and Eutonyl, Lithium, Prozac
Xanax, Valium, Librium, BuSpar, Ativan, Halcion, Tranxene, Paxipam, Centrax, Klonopin, Dalmane, Serax, Restoril, Miltown, Equanil, Atarax and Vistaril
(psychostimulants – “speed”) Ritalin (highly addictive), Dexedrine, and Cylert
Side-effects include but are not limited to: dizziness, fainting, fast heartbeat, stabbing chest pain, high or low blood pressure, restless muscle movements in your eyes, tongue, jaw or neck, drooling, tremors (uncontrolled shaking), convulsions, restlessness or need to keep moving, shuffling walk, tic-like or twitching movements, trembling or shaking of hands and fingers, twisting movements of body, weakness of arms and legs, shortness of breath, cough with yellow or green mucus, difficulty in speaking or swallowing, unusually pale skin, decreased white blood cells, vomiting, weight gain, unusual tiredness or weakness, muscle stiffness, abdominal or stomach pains, aching muscles and joints, confusion, fever and chills, hot, dry skin or lack of sweating, muscle weakness, nausea or diarrhea, unusual bleeding or bruising, sexual dysfunction, confusion, trouble concentrating, agitation, hallucinations, nightmares, mania, panic attacks, aggression, hostility, anger, suicidal thoughts or behaviors. Many of these drugs are also addictive, with severe withdrawal symptoms occuring when taken away from the patient.
Most antidepressants also come with this warning: “Tell the doctor immediately if you notice worsening depression/other psychiatric conditions, unusual behavior changes (including possible suicidal thoughts/attempts), or other mental/mood changes (including new/worsening anxiety, panic attacks, trouble sleeping, irritability, hostile/angry feelings, impulsive actions, severe restlessness, very rapid speech). Be especially watchful for these symptoms when a new antidepressant is started or when the dose is changed.”15
The first antidepressant that was put on the market was called Thorazine. Even though Thorazine was introduced in the 1950’s, it was not until the 1970’s that the public knew about the side effects. Smith Kline & French, an early pharmaceutical company, had a 3,000% return on investments of Thorazine, with sales worth 6.6 billion dollars. This was in 1967! This was only the beginning of a very profitable market for the pharmaceutical companies and of course psychiatrists were quick to avail themselves of a lucrative business.
“The meds don’t go far enough and people need more than just a pill,” says Newburyport psychiatrist Dan Carlat. In his book Unhinged, Carlat argues most doctors in his profession have given up talk therapy in favor of the more lucrative drug therapy. “We’re pill pushers,” Carlat said. “Insurance companies reimburse us more for pyscho-pharmacology visits than for therapy visits. So if I can fit 3 or 4 patients in an hour for psycho-pharm or med visits I’m going to make twice as much as I would make if I were seeing them for therapy.” In his controversial blog, Carlat has long criticized the influence big drug companies have over what psychiatrists prescribe.
“Drug reps will come in and give you your favorite latte. They’ll give staff sandwiches. It’s not like they’re bribing us to give that medication. It just causes that particular brand to be uppermost in our mind,” said Carlat. Carlat said most psychiatrists don’t know nearly enough about the medications they prescribe.
“We don’t really know what the medications do,” said Carlat. “We often talk about neuro-transmitters like serotonin and noroepharin. But that really ends up being neuro-babble. It sounds impressive to patients and it makes them think we know what we’re doing when we’re prescribing the medications. But we don’t really know how these meds work.”
Over 8% of the population of the world has taken psychotropic drugs, with all profits going into the pocket of Big Pharma.
Since psychiatrists are benefiting through the prescribing of medication (while being sponsored or financially reimbursed), of course they do their best to encourage their patients to take the drugs.
Dr Andrew McCulloch, chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation, said: “We are well aware of the effect of diet upon our physical health. But we are only just beginning to understand how the brain as an organ is influenced by the nutrients it derives from the foods we eat and how diets have an impact on our mental health.”
Researchers did a study on the proliferation of industrialized farming, a practice that has introduced pesticides and altered the body-fat composition of animals due to the diet they are now fed. The diet given to chickens has altered the balance of vital fatty acids omega-3 and omega-6 in the meat, which the brain needs to ensure it functions properly.
Saturated fats, consumption of which has been increasing with the boom in ready meals, act to slow down the brain’s working process. The report said people were eating 34% less vegetables and two-thirds less fish – the main source of omega-3 fatty acids – than they were 50 years ago. Such changes, the study said, could be linked to depression, schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and Alzheimer’s disease.
New research also links mental disorders such as ADHD to common pesticides, particularly organophosphate – a man-made toxin originally developed for chemical warfare and now used extensively in agriculture. Scientists in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives write that children exposed to this compound while still in the womb have a higher chance of developing attention problems by age 5. The children in the study were all resident of the heavily farmed Salinas Valley in California, but a recent report in Pediatrics showed a link to ADHD even in areas where pesticide levels in the environment are not especially high. Writing for the Journal of Health Economics’, Michigan State University economist Todd Elder suggests that nearly one million children may be misdiagnosed.
A study involving more than 4700 participants, led by Dr. Peter P. Zandi, strongly suggests that the combination of vitamin C and E lowers the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. According to the team’s analysis, reported in The Archives of Neurology, use of vitamin E and C supplements in combination lowered the risks of having Alzheimer’s disease at the start of the study by about 78 percent, and the odds of developing the disease by about 64 percent during the follow-up period. Genetically modified foods have also been linked to anxiety and depression, even though tests have never been done by the FDA to see if they have the possibility to generate mental disorders.
Alternative methods have been proven by medical doctors and naturopaths to be effective in treating and most importantly, curing, mental disease. Most notably is orthomolecular treatment researched and used by Dr. Abram Hoffer, MdF. PhD., which deserves a through investigation. His work was scorned by orthodox psychiatrists, although he cured many people of the most chronic mental disorder of all: schizophrenia.
Here are the words of the Hippocratic Oath, spoken by every member of the medical profession:
I swear to fulfill, to the best of my ability and judgment, this covenant: I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.
I will apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures [that] are required, avoiding those twin traps of overtreatment and therapeutic nihilism ... Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. If it is given to me to save a life, all thanks. But it may also be within my power to take a life; this awesome responsibility must be faced with great humbleness and awareness of my own frailty. Above all, I must not play at God.
I will remember that I do not treat a fever chart, a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person’s family and economic stability. My responsibility includes these related problems, if I am to care adequately for the sick.
I will prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure. I will remember that I remain a member of society, with special obligations to all my fellow human beings, those sound of mind and body as well as the infirm ... May I always act so as to preserve the finest traditions of my calling and may I long experience the joy of healing those who seek my help.
Let us remember that it is Big Pharma who benefits from our fear, naiveté and complacency when we allow their influence to direct the health care system. Let us do our research and find knowledgeable people who will see that the medical profession return to the service of the people that they swore to heal, and that they might return to the ethical practice that they swore to uphold when they pronounced the words of the Hippocratic Oath.
1.) http://www.tufts.edu/~skrimsky/PDF/DSM%20COI.pdf
2.) The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
3.) http://www.neurology-asia.org/articles/20043_063.pdf
4.) Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 2001, 79 (11)
5.) Psychotropic Drug Abuse in Foster Care Costs Government Billions, June 22, 2010
6.) U.S. Department of Education
7.) http://www.ritalindeath.com/ADHD.htm
8.) NIH Consensus Report from Ethical Human Sciences and Services, Vol. 1, No. 1, 1999
9.) http://www.autism99.org/articles/Autism_ADD_ADHD__Vaccine_Related.htm
10.) http://www.teenscreentruth.com/
11.) http://www.christopherpittman.org/
12.) http://www.naturalnews.com/026895_suicide_drugs_suicides.html
13.) http://www.operationmorningstar.org/psychotropic_connection_to_suici.htm
14.) “The tasks of psychiatry” J.R. Rees, M.D. October 12, 1948
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