Just when one might have thought that the U.S. was getting a handle on opioid addiction, another harmful and highly addictive opioid-like drug has appeared in widespread use.
The March 2021 issue of Consumer Reports has a comprehensive article about Tianeptine, an illegal drug linked to reports of harm, abuse and deaths.
Tianeptine acts in the brain as an opioid. The FDA says it is illegal and unsafe in the U.S., although it is approved as a prescription antidepressant in some European, Asian, and Latin American countries.
Reports indicate that tianeptine is even more addictive, with more severe withdrawal adverse reactions, than opioids and heroin.
Yet some proponents, possibly motivated by greed if not by malign intentions, are trying to get the FDA to approve it as a prescription drug for depression in the U.S.
Are You Depressed?
Psychiatry is heavily pushing false data about depression.
The fact is, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Medical Association and the National Institute of Mental Health admit that there are no medical tests to confirm mental disorders as a disease but do nothing to counter the false idea that these are biological/medical conditions when in fact, diagnosis is simply done by a checklist of behaviors.
People do experience symptoms of depression. But there are non-harmful, medical alternatives; addictive and harmful psychiatric drugs are not the solution.
