If you’re suffering from depression or you’ve ever walked into a doctor’s office and complained about feeling under the weather, anxious or having panic attacks, you know very well that a prescription for antidepressants is probably on the cards.

There might be more to it

Antidepressants are among the most prescribed drugs on this planet and, for most people, taking these drugs is the beginning of a life of further misery. These drugs have been linked to everything from sexual dysfunction to suicide… as if that is not enough to make you feel depressed in the first place.

Based on the results of a recent study, published in Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, there’s a good chance that by handing you that antidepressant prescription, your doctor could be ignoring the early warning signs of something far more serious.

In this latest study, Italian researchers analyzed 21 medical studies from around the world and concluded that depression was often a strong, early indicator of serious medical disorders such as Cushing’s syndrome (a metabolic disorder caused by overproduction of corticosteroid hormones), hypothyroidism, a pending heart attack or even pancreatic or lung cancer.

When you’re talking about a potentially aggressive cancer – or your heart that’s about to stop ticking – early detection is a matter of life and death.

And it can be avoided.

Instead of writing you a prescription for Paxil or Lexapro, your doctor’s first port of call when you complain about the blues should be to send you for a very basic diagnostic blood test to determine if you might be at risk of something more serious.

Don’t get me wrong – every case of depression isn’t some cancer diagnosis waiting to happen. Depression is often temporary and can be linked to something as simple as a nutritional deficiency.

But in other cases, you might be feeling run down and depressed because your body is literally exhausting itself trying to fight off an infection or compensating for a looming medical condition. Popping an antidepressant just masks these symptoms and can allow a potentially serious disease to fester.

If you’re suffering from depression or anxiety, make sure you’re getting a full medical checkup to understand the root cause of your problem.

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Bear in mind all the material in this email alert is provided for information purposes only. We are not addressing anyone’s personal situation. Please consult with your own physician before acting on any recommendations contained herein.

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Sources:

“Mood and Anxiety Disorders as Early Manifestations of Medical Illness: A Systematic Review.” Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Cosci F, Fava GA, Sonino N. 2015;84:22-29