Keeping it Together: Trump and RFK Jr. go after SSRIs

Immediately following Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation as health secretary, President Donald Trump instructed his administration to assess the “threat” posed to children by the prescription of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, stimulants and weight-loss drugs. 

This came as part of an executive order installing Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” commission, which aims to end the “childhood chronic disease crisis” and the “over-reliance on medication and treatments.”

Hi! I'm Alyssa, a wellness reporter at Paste BN. This week I looked into Trump's executive order, what RFK Jr. has said about SSRIs in the past and how the medication actually works.

Trump's executive order quickly became a trending topic, and while it focused on children and adolescents, the online conversation broadened to include all SSRI usage. One post defending SSRIs hit upwards of 5 million views.

“SSRI's literally saved my life," wrote one X user. "I had debilitating depression and anxiety with suicidal ideation, and it has transformed me to be able to handle my mental illness and keep harmful thoughts away."

SSRIs are a class of antidepressants that treat depression and other mental health conditions by increasing levels of serotonin — a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood, appetite, sleep, memory, social behavior and libido — in the brain, according to Cleveland Clinic. Kennedy has suggested that antidepressants cause mass shootings, a claim that has been scientifically disproven, and likened antidepressant use to heroin addiction.

But suicide is a major public health crisis — according to the CDC, 49,000 people died by suicide in 2022, which is about one death every 11 minutes — and antidepressants can be lifesaving. However, they should always be monitored closely by a doctor, especially in pediatric patients.

Antidepressant-induced suicidal ideation is uncommon, but is more likely to occur in young people under the age of 25 when they first take SSRIs compared to other SSRI users, according to the NHS in the U.K. Differences in how SSRIs work in adolescents compared to adults are still poorly understood. More research could further inform best treatment practices.

There has also been a push from some experts for doctors to adequately warn patients of withdrawal symptoms before starting an SSRI, and for more reproducible studies on antidepressant withdrawal, which can inform future guidelines.

Learn more about SSRIs and Trump's executive order here, and check out these other stories from the week below.