Here’s a headline sure to get my male readers’ attention: Antidepressant damages sperm.

I don’t approach this topic lightly. Depression is a serious, clinical condition, and something that affects tens of millions of people. It wouldn’t be the most widely prescribed pharmaceutical drug if it wasn’t an issue. But there are natural ways to treat depression that don’t involve pharmaceutical drugs – drugs that can often more harm than good. A Cornell University finding is just the latest reason why going natural is a better option.

As anyone who has taken an antidepressant can tell you, they have a tendency to decrease one’s libido. But even if that desire remained intact, according to this latest study, it might be all in vain (if one is interested in progeny, that is).

It isn’t so much that antidepressants diminish a man’s sperm count, but rather they damage the sperm count itself by compromising the sperms’ DNA. Researchers say that of the 35 men analyzed, their damaged sperm DNA rose from about 14 percent prior to the men taking the antidepressant up to 30 percent after taking the antidepressant for a month. Researchers from Cornell Medical Center plan on presenting their findings to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in the next couple of months.

While several selected serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have been implicated in damaging a man’s sperm count in the past, the target of this study is Seroxat, or Paxil as it’s more commonly known.

Not surprisingly, GlaxoSmithKline – the maker of Paxil, which is the most widely used antidepressant in Britain – issued a statement saying that Cornell’s findings should not engender “unnecessary concern” for those taking Paxil. Big surprise, right?

GlaxoSmithKline has a financial stake in these findings, so it goes without saying that they’ll be analyzing the research themselves, likely to come back with their own set of findings that debunk Cornell’s findings. But they can’t debunk the fact that the evidence just keeps mounting regarding the side effects associated with pharmaceutical-based antidepressants. Never mind the side effects associated with all antidepressants, how about the prevalence of side effects in just one antidepressant! Since the study was about Paxil, take Paxil as a “for instance.”

For instance, in 2006, GlaxoSmithKline found an increased risk of suicidal behavior among many taking their antidepressant, prompting them to report those risks for the public’s welfare (not to mention their own). That risk now accompanies their warning labels. Paxil’s list of side effects is likely to grow in the not-too-distant future because of a pending lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed by two families from West Virginia, alleges Paxil caused birth defects in the children of mothers taking the antidepressant. The suit claims GlaxoSmithKline knew of this increased risk, yet failed to list that risk on Paxil’s labeling.

Just listen to any advertisement for any antidepressant. The narrator spends more time talking about how it might adversely affect you than how it might favorably affect you (my favorite side effect has to be the “oily discharge and an inability to control it”).

Why risk all the side effects when you don’t have to?

For a list of my top recommendations on how to feel normal again, check out my article titled “Depression-Fighting Alternatives to Elevate Your Mood.” You’ll truly be glad you did.