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Letter: On the causes of depression

Published 12 February 2025

From Beth Morrell, Raleigh, North Carolina, US

Even if depression isn’t caused by low serotonin, as Joanna Moncrieff sets out in the book you reviewed, I am glad to see some researchers have pointed out that this doesn’t mean SSRIs, drugs commonly used to treat it, are ineffective (18 January, p 28).

In my view, the most obvious explanation for depression in the modern world is that we are in an environment grossly mismatched to the one we evolved for.

Issue no. 3530 published 15 February 2025

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