Capstone Abstract What are the Negative Effect of Prozac on teens in the United States? Prozac, one of the most studied drugs in the world today, is becoming a serious death threat to many adolescents in the United States. Death rates are increasing from suicide brought on by the drug, more depression, more anxiety and more wonders of why the drug is becoming so harmful. Doctors are prone to handing out the drug not knowing what the side effects could be by not taking time to look at all the information. If the media is even promoting the drug as a harmful drug, maybe drug companies should take a step back and look at this killer. Why would someone want to take a drug that is more harmful to their health. The drug should be used like any other drug, in moderation.

Project Context & Contributuions Prozac has helped a number of people through chemical imbalances and depression. It is one of the top drugs to cure a person of this ailment. There are downfalls to this drug and many doctors who prescribe the drug fail to tell patients this. My topic is "What are the negative effects of prozac on teens within the United States." Prozac has been known to harm teenagers internally, suicidal acts are used on others as well as that own person and it has been known to make a person worse than trying to help them. Doctors give out the drug to quickly and it is one of the most expensive drugs given out. It has it's name as the "miracle drug." This topic is of importance today because teens have been taking the lives of others more than usually within this decade. When reported on certain cases, it is mentioned many times that the teen was on a form of an antidepressant. This subject will help clients, parents and possibly even doctors to be more skeptical of the drug and not to take it or hand it out so freely. The drug should be more researched because why would an antidepressant be having a negative effect on teens instead of helping them. In the HCOM major, critical communication skills will be used in this research because I will be getting information on my own from books, but I also will be contacting psychiatrists to see what is there take on the drug. Historical analysis will be uesed because Prozac will be researched thoroughly.

Project Format The form of a research project that I will be using is a 20-25 page paper describing the negative effect of Prozac on teenagers in California and why doctors submit the drug so openly? I have chosen this format because many parents are concerned about the health of their teens and by my capstone concerning health, they can learn more about Prozac and find out that it has many downfalls towards a teenager. I will also be incorporating the media's effects of prozac on Teenagers. This research is achievable in one semester. I already have much of the research done and by getting some interviews from doctors, the project will flow much more. By writing a 20-25 page report and incorporating the media's perspective on Prozac towards teens, this will meet my journalism concentration.

Links of Interest http://temagami.carleton.ca/jmc/cnews/19012001/n8.htm http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2004-09-13- prozac_x.htmhttp://www.newsinferno.com/archives/1266 http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org/features/2005/03/25_helmsm_prozacfolo/ http://www.health24.com/news/Depression/1-903,37997.asp Barondes, Samuel H. Better Than Prozac:Creating The Next Generation of Psychiatric Drugs. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003 Wurtzel, Elizabeth. Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America. New York: Riverhead Books, 1994 Healy, David. Let Them Eat Prozac. New York: New York University Press, 2004

Jeff Weise, the assailant in the Red Lake shootings, was reportedly taking Prozac, a popular antidepressant. Some research seems to indicates a link between the medication and suicide attempts and violence. (Photo by Stephen Chernin/Getty Images)

Research Questions 1.) What are the main negative effects of Prozac on teens in the United States and why is the drug permitting terrible effects on teens? 2.) Is Prozac the only miracle drug that can help teens with depression? 3.) Should doctors be prescribing the drug when it has had negative effects on teens? 4.) Why is this drug prescribed over so many others for teens with depression or a chemical imbalance? 5.) Is it based only on the person whether they can handle the drug or is it based only on the drug given to a person? 6.) Should Prozac be given over the counter rather than from a psychiatrist? 7.) Are suicidal tendencies based only on Prozac? 8.) Why do teens keep on taking Prozac when they know that it can be harmful to their health? 9.) Should parents of teens be more skeptical of Prozac being handed out to their teens or should parents just let their teens take the drug because they are told by doctors that it will help their teens? 10.) How does the media effect Prozac users?

Key Findings My key findings for my project were definitely through scholarly books and articles. Prozac is a drug not to be messed with. It is to be taken in moderation, especially with teenagers. The drug is more of a stimulant than an anti-depressant used to help teenagers with a chemical imbalance. The findings answer my questions through why the drug is harmful and why the drug should be definitely watched over. Overall, Prozac is a stimulant used to modernize America, but like any other drug, it hurts more than helps if abused. New questions that that are raised are Why is Prozac so overused in today's society and should there be an age group taking this drug?

Evidence Ethical and Historical Analysis was used to find the history behind Prozac and why the drug is so promoted heavily. Ethically, this drug is promoting America in the way of chemical imbalance within teenagers due to the media and society today.

Working Bibliography 1.) Lannelli, Vincent “Kids and Antidepressants: Is there an increased risk for suicide?” . from About.com. June, 2003 2.) Kramer, Peter “Should teenagers take drugs?” June, 2004 3.) “Teen killer at Red Lake Indian Reservation school reportedly taking high doses of Prozac”-NewsTarget.com. 2004 4.) Garnett, Leah, “Prozac revisited: As drug gets remade, concerns about suicides surface”- Boston Globe. 2000 5.) Collins, Jeffrey,“Teen says Antidepressants Led to Slayings”- “My Way News.” 2004 6.) Glenmullen, Joseph M.D., Prozac Backlash. Simon & Schuster; 2000 7.) Whitaker, Julian MD: “The Scourge of Prozac”, The Assassination of our Youth. 1999 8.) Coyle, Joanne & MacWhannell Doreen, “Sociology of Health and Wellness.” Volume 24 Issue 6 Pg. 689. 2002. 9.) Basco Jr. MD, William T., “Teens at Risk: A focus on Adolescent Suicide”..2006 12.)”Depression: Signs, Symptoms, Types and Risk Factors.”- “MedicineNet.com.” 2001-2007 10.) Wurtzel, Elizabeth, Prozac Nation. Riverhead Books, New York; 1995 11.) Barondes, Samuel H., Better Than Prozac. Oxford University Press, New York; 2003 12.) Healy, David., Let Them Eat Prozac. New York University Press, New York; 2004 13.) Ranade, Supria, “Suicide Among Teenagers On the Rise.” 2003