The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) has changed its guidelines to no longer recommend Prozac for children with depression. A new review of trial data by academics in Austria and the UK found that fluoxetine, sold under Prozac, is clinically equivalent to a placebo in treating depression in children, despite being better than placebo at producing weight loss.
The study looked at 12 large trials involving Prozac published between 1997 and 2024 and concluded that it improved depressive symptoms very little. Experts say that the potential risks of harmful side-effects outweigh any potential benefits.
Common side-effects experienced by children on antidepressants include weight gain, sleep disturbance, concentration problems, and increased suicidal ideation. The review suggests that guidelines in other countries, including the US and Canada, also ignored evidence showing Prozac was clinically equivalent to a placebo.
Experts argue that guidelines should not recommend treatments with no clinical benefit, and instead focus on addressing factors contributing to depression.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/nov/20/prozac-no-better-than-placebo-for-treating-children-with-depression-experts-say