Are antidepressant medications safe for children and young people?
• As with most medicines, antidepressants have some side-effects such as nausea and headaches, which are usually mild and short-term if the person is going to tolerate them. • Recently there has been concern about one particular side-effect that seems to be connected with the use of SSRIs. There seems to be an increase in suicidal thoughts and urges to act on these thoughts during the early stages of treatment in approximately 4 per cent of those treated. • Side-effects are experienced in 10 per cent of people which lead them to stop taking medication. • These concerns have led health authorities in a number of countries to review all the available scientific studies relating to antidepressant use in children and young people under the age of 24 years (see below*). • These reviews did find some evidence for an increase in the risk of suicidal thoughts and urges in young people taking these medications. • Abrupt cessation of SSRIs, once they have been taken for a while, leads to unpleas
