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TIME Healthland

Top Ten Legal Drugs Linked to Violence

Posted by Maia Szalavitz

January 7, 2011 at 10:06 am

When people consider the connections between drugs and violence, what typically

comes to mind are illegal drugs like crack cocaine. However, certain medications

— most notably, some antidepressants like Prozac — have also been linked to

increase risk for violent, even homicidal behavior.

A new study from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices published in the

journal PloS One and based on data from the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System

has identified 31 drugs that are disproportionately linked with reports of

violent behavior towards others. (More on Time.com: New Hope For An Anti-Cocaine

Vaccine)

Please note that this does not necessarily mean that these drugs cause violent

behavior. For example, in the case of opioid pain medications like Oxycontin,

people with a prior history of violent behavior may seek  drugs in order to

sustain an addiction, which they support via predatory crime. In the case of

antipsychotics, the drugs may be given in an attempt to reduce violence by

people suffering from schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders — so the

drugs here might not be causing violence, but could be linked with it because

they're used to try to stop it.

Nonetheless, when one particular drug in a class of nonaddictive drugs used to

treat the same problem stands out, that suggests caution: unless the drug is

being used to treat radically different groups of people, that drug may actually

be the problem. Researchers calculated a ratio of risk for each drug compared to

the others in the database, adjusting for various relevant factors that could

create misleading comparisons.  Here are the top ten offenders:

10. Desvenlafaxine (Pristiq) An antidepressant which affects both serotonin and

noradrenaline, this drug is 7.9 times more likely to be associated with violence

than other drugs.

9. Venlafaxine (Effexor) A drug related to Pristiq in the same class of

antidepressants, both are also used to treat anxiety disorders. Effexor is 8.3

times more likely than other drugs to be related to violent behavior. (More on

Time.com: Adderall May Not Make You Smarter, But It Makes You Think You Are)

8. Fluvoxamine (Luvox) An antidepressant that affects serotonin (SSRI), Luvox is

8.4 times more likely than other medications to be linked with violence

7. Triazolam (Halcion) A benzodiazepine which can be addictive, used to treat

insomnia. Halcion is 8.7 times more likely to be linked with violence than other

drugs, according to the study.

6) Atomoxetine (Strattera) Used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity

disorder (ADHD), Strattera affects the neurotransmitter noradrenaline and is 9

times more likely to be linked with violence compared to the average medication.

5) Mefoquine (Lariam) A treatment for malaria, Lariam has long been linked with

reports of bizarre behavior. It is 9.5 times more likely to be linked with

violence than other drugs.

4) Amphetamines: (Various) Amphetamines are used to treat ADHD and affect the

brain's dopamine and noradrenaline systems. They are 9.6 times more likely to be

linked to violence, compared to other drugs.

3) Paroxetine (Paxil) An SSRI antidepressant, Paxil is also linked with more

severe withdrawal symptoms and a greater risk of birth defects compared to other

medications in that class. It is 10.3 times more likely to be linked with

violence compared to other drugs. (More on Time.com: Healthland's Guide to Life

2011)

2) Fluoxetine (Prozac) The first well-known SSRI antidepressant, Prozac is 10.9

times more likely to be linked with violence in comparison with other

medications.

1) Varenicline (Chantix) The anti-smoking medication Chantix affects the

nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, which helps reduce craving for smoking.

Unfortunately, it's 18 times more likely to be linked with violence compared to

other drugs — by comparison, that number for Xyban is 3.9 and just 1.9 for

nicotine replacement. Because Chantix is slightly superior in terms of quit

rates in comparison to other drugs, it shouldn't necessarily be ruled out as an

option for those trying to quit, however.

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