Question: My doctor has recommended that I take an antidepressant to treat my mild depression, but I am hesitant to take a drug. Should I investigate other treatment options?

Dr. Brownstein's Answer:

There is a time and a place for antidepressant medications for those suffering from severe depression. There are safer options for mild to moderate depression. Both doctors and patients should not be so quick to use an antidepressant medication.

An October 19, 2011, article from Reuters stated, “One in 10 Americans over the age of 12 takes an antidepressant [medication], a class of drugs that has become wildly popular in the past several decades.” Antidepressant drugs were the third-most common class of drugs used by Americans of all ages between 2005 and 2008.

It is a tragedy that 10 percent of Americans are taking an antidepressant medication. These drugs have barely been shown to outperform a placebo. Studies have proven that there are safer and more effective ways to combat depression, specifically talk therapy and exercise. And many other studies have shown that exercise outperforms antidepressants in the treatment of depression.

More information about antidepressant medications and alternatives to drug therapies can be found in my book, "Drugs That Don’t Work and Natural Therapies That Do."