Two studies released recently highlight how far down the slippery slope towards “Brave New World” we have come in the last decade or so.

The first, “Antidepressant use in persons aged 12 and over“, highlights the reprogramming of our children’s minds and health and (by implication) the ultimate revolution it naturally will lead to.

“America’s State of Mind“, a big Pharma study, documents that a huge increase in pharmacological drugs has taken place in adults as well (remember when ADHD only referred to children?).  The implications of this are profound.

In “Brave New World“, Aldous Huxley painted a society in which you were happy as long as you didn’t think, and when you did try to think, you were programmed to “Take a holiday” thru the use of Soma (a type of psychotropic drug developed in that society).  Given the fact that the greatest threat to power is an independent mind, capable of critical thinking, the ultimate Final Revolution would be one in which we are little more than zombied, drugged-out robots, capable of only following the most basic tasks.  Higher level thinking skills would be of no use and considered “anti-social”.

In fact, in that sense, the most dangerous person to power would be one who was capable of independent, critical thinking skills.  All the rest would be lying peacefully in their pods, sucking on their blue pills (Matrix).

No need to prepare; we are already in the Final Revolution.

I will summarize the key findings of both documents and you can view them below:

“Antidepressant user in persons aged 12 and over”

“America’s State of Mind”

1. 11% of American’s aged 12 and over are on antidepressants.
2. In the United States, an estimated 5.4 million children ages 4 to 17 have been diagnosed with ADHD.
3. Overall, the number of Americans on medications used to treat psychological and behavioral disorders has substantially increased since 2001.
4. Antidepressants were the third most common prescription drug taken by Americans of all ages in 2005–2008 and the most frequently used by persons aged 18–44 years.
5. more than one‐in‐five adults was on at least one of these medications in 2010, up 22 percent from ten years earlier.
6. Less than one-third of persons taking a single antidepressant have seen a mental health professional in the past year.
7. From 1988–1994 through 2005–2008, the rate of antidepressant use in the United States among all ages increased nearly 400%.
8. Women are far more likely to take a drug to treat a mental health condition than men, with more than a quarter of the adult female population on these drugs in 2010 as compared to 15 percent of men.
9. About one in 10 Americans aged 12 and over takes anti-depressant medication.
10. Women ages 45 and older showed the highest use of these drugs overall. Yet surprisingly, it was younger men (ages 20 to 44) who experienced the greatest increase in their numbers, rising 43 percent from 2001 to 2010.
11. Twenty-three percent of women aged 40–59 take antidepressants, more than in any other age-sex group.
12. In 2010, 21 percent of women ages 20 and older were using an antidepressant.
13. Among both males and females, those aged 40 and over are more likely to take antidepressants than those in younger age groups.
14. From 2001 to 2010 the number of women on an antidepressant grew 29 percent.
    • The most significant increases (40 percent) were among women 65 and older.
    • Men’s use of antidepressants is almost half that of women, but has also been on the rise with a 28 percent increase over the past decade.
15. There is no difference by income in the prevalence of antidepressant usage.
16. An estimated 40 million American adults suffer from anxiety disorders.
17. Females are more likely than males to take antidepressant medication at every level of depression severity.
    • Overall, 40% of females and 20% of males with severe depressive symptoms take antidepressant medication
    • More than one-third of females with moderate depressive symptoms, and less than one-fifth of males with moderate depressive symptoms, take antidepressant medication.
18. The most notable increase in the use of these medications was seen in children ages 10‐19; utilization increased among this age group by almost 50 percent.
19. Among persons taking antidepressants, approximately 14% take more than one antidepressant; the percentage was similar for males and females
20. While it is well known that ADHD is prevalent among children, diagnosis and treatment of ADHD has in fact grown at a much faster rate among adults.
21. Medco data shows that use of atypical antipsychotics has soared over the decade, with the greatest spike among adults ages 20‐64, up more than 3.5 times from 2001‐2010.
    • Atypical antipsychotics are considered second generation antipsychotics in the treatment of schizophrenia and schizophrenia‐related disorders.
    • Examples in use are
      • Risperdal (risperidone)
      • Zyprexa (olanzapine)
      • Seroquel (quetiapine)
      • Geodon (ziprasidone)
      • Abilify (aripiprazole)
      • Invega (paliperidone)
22. The use of atypical antipsychotics has soared over the decade, with the greatest spike among adults ages 20‐64, up more than 3.5 times from 2001‐2010.
23. There is evidence that the risk of diabetes and metabolic disorders from using atypical antipsychotics could be much more severe for pediatric patients than adults.
24. Atypical antipsychotics are frequently used in the 65+ demographic to treat aggression in patients with dementia.
    • However, these medications carry a boxed warning regarding increased mortality risk associated with their use in treating elderly patients with dementia.
    • 30 out of 1000 seniors are taking atypical antipsychotics.