This question popped into my head as I was driving north on I-95 the other day and witnessed at least five instances of road rage or extremely aggressive driving. 

I swear in one case it looked like a car was trying to run another one off the road!

Of course acts of aggression and violence are not limited to people driving on highways.  Practically every day there are reports of another shooting, mass shooting, a person plowing their vehicle into a crowd of people, and other heinous acts.

What in the world is going on?  Why are people everywhere losing it?

Well, there are a lot of possibilities and contributing factors, and this blog would be a book if I delved into all of them…but there’s one elephant in the room that nobody seems to be talking about.

Here’s what I mean.

Thy daily dose of rage

While it’s true that some people may get stressed and snap, a lot of people are getting “help” with their aggression.

As in pharmaceutical help.

ALL of the following medications list aggression, aggressive behavior, agitation, irritability, actions that are out of control, loss of self-control, mental changes and/or mood changes as potential side effects:

• Adderall
• Advair
• Ativan
• Celexa
• Chantix
• Humira
• Klonopin
• Lexapro
• Nexium
• Paxil
• Phenobarbital
• Prednisone
• Prilosec
• Prozac
• Remicade
• Valium
• Xanax
• Zoloft

These also happen to be among some of the most commonly prescribed drugs in the world.

Note that you won’t ever hear anyone on the news talk about this because the media are owned by the pharmaceutical industry, receiving 70-90 percent of their advertising revenue from drug companies. 

If you want the real truth, the news is the LAST thing you should pay attention to.  

SSRI antidepressants—in a class all their own

Worthy of individual mention here are SSRI antidepressants like Prozac.

Prozac was released in 1987 and only two years prior to that, direct-to-consumer advertising of drugs had been legalized in the US.  Then the FDA loosened their drug advertising rules even more in the mid-90s. Following this, ads for SSRIs skyrocketed…and so did prescriptions. 

In fact, in the 20-year period from 1988 to 2008, antidepressant use in the US shot up by an incredible 400 percent! 

And while the drug companies tried their best to sweep the dangerous side effects under the rug, they became SO obvious that as of 2004, all antidepressants in the US must include a black box warning that they can cause suicidal thoughts and behaviors, and that:

“Anxiety, agitation, panic attacks, insomnia, irritability, hostility (aggressiveness), impulsivity, akathisia (psychomotor restlessness), hypomania, and mania have been reported in adult and pediatric patients being treated with antidepressants for major depressive disorder as well as for other indications, both psychiatric and nonpsychiatric.”

From the horse’s mouth

Over and above black box warnings, former users of Prozac have reported the following effects and experiences while taking the drug:

• Extreme irritability
• Feeling possessed
• Panic and anxiety attacks
• Extreme difficulty with concentration
• No ability to love
• Impaired judgment
• Feeling out of control
• An overwhelming fear of being controlled by others
• Violent suicidal or homicidal thoughts
• No feelings of guilt or sense of conscience

Sorry, but I don’t find it a coincidence at all that we are seeing continuing acts of aggression and violence as increasing numbers of people are taking these drugs.

But wait! There’s even more!

Prozac is metabolized by your liver, so it’s no surprise that it’s associated with impaired liver function.    

It can also affect your pancreas and impair its ability to regulate your blood sugar—which puts you at a greater risk for Type 2 diabetes.

Prozac can also affect your neurological functioning and cause you to develop a tic—an uncontrollable movement such as your tongue darting in and out of your mouth, lip smacking, lip puckering, fishlike kissing motions and pelvic thrusting—which can continue after the drug is stopped!

In addition, it has been associated with decreased white blood cell counts, which is a strong indication that it affects your immune system too.

What you can do

The good news is there’s plenty you can do to help create a state of strong physical and mental health, safely and naturally, so that you are less likely to need medication to begin with!

Here are some smart strategies to try:

Have a diet of nourishing REAL foods

Nutrient deficiencies are a cause or contributing factor behind most illnesses.

For example:

• Kids diagnosed with ADHD have been shown to be deficient in magnesium, iron, zinc and vitamin B6.
• People with depression are lacking B-complex vitamins, vitamin C, zinc and magnesium.
• Cancer has been linked to deficiencies in selenium, zinc, and vitamins A, D and E.

So stick to wholesome real foods like meats, poultry, fish, fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, eggs and good fats (butter, coconut oil, olive oil and lard). 

And stay away from processed garbage and fast food.  The late, great Jack LaLanne said it best: “If man made it, don’t eat it.”

Support your immune system

Your immune system not only protects you against infections and viruses, but also cancer and heart disease!

You can pamper your immune system by having a healthy diet, limiting refined carbs and sugars, and supplementing with a high-quality probiotic like Super Shield multi-strain probiotic formula.   

Super Shield’s full-spectrum blend of 13 well-studied probiotic strains can help support a healthy gut microbiome.  Since your gut houses 80 percent of your immune system, it’s absolutely vital to keep your flora balance strong and able to fight off dangerous microbes and disease.

Drink enough water

Your body is about 75 percent water, so it only follows that drinking enough water every day helps make a healthier you.

A good rule of thumb is to drink half of the number of pounds you weigh in ounces of filtered water each day.  So, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should be drinking about 75 ounces of water daily.

Get enough Vitamin D

Vitamin D helps protect against cancer, heart disease and can even ease depression!  Plus it helps counter inflammatory immune responses such as those seen in autoimmune conditions, asthma and allergies.

Unfortunately, Vitamin D also happens to be a common deficiency, especially in the northeast where sunlight is limited for much of the year.

You can help make sure you have healthful levels of this superstar disease fighter with Optimum DK Formula. 

Each capsule provides a therapeutic 5,000 IU dose of Vitamin D3, plus its partners Vitamins K1, K2 and the mineral boron. 

Talk to your doctor about alternatives

If you are on any medications, especially the ones I mentioned above, it’s time to talk to your doctor about alternatives.

For example, enzyme formulas like Digestizol Max have been shown to help with indigestion and heartburn.

Fish oil formulas like VitalMega-3 can help lower cholesterol and blood pressure.

And turmeric found in our Optimal Turmeric Blend has been shown to be as effective as several pain medications for arthritis and back pain!

DO YOUR PART to make sure your body and mind function like they are supposed to! 

To your health,

Sherry Brescia