SSRI along with nearly all antidepressants increase hippocampus size and density. However the hippocampus is a large and busy area and the effects of antidepressants tend to be quite specific in areas of the hippocampus. As such they don't tend to have a neurotropic effect as the the areas they effect don't play a huge part in cognition. That being said in depressed individuals where the damage tends to be much more significant they do often have a neurotropic effect in there is clear neuro-cognitive decline (seen in moderate-severe or worse depression).
Someone mentioned that SSRI's tend not to help people. This isn't true. They tend to lead to a 50% improvement or remission in around 60% of people, who have moderate or worse depression, with more efficacy the severer the depression. However the placebo effect seems to be particularly pronounced and up to 40% of people with depression responding to a placebo.
With regards to cortisol to much is a bad thing and to little is equally as bad. Depression has both been linked to much and to little cortisol, although its generally suggested symptoms are different with to much leading to insomnia, significant psychomotor involvement, increased risk of psychotic symptoms, severe dysphoria, very pronounced cognitive problems and a loss of appetite. To little seems to lead to liable mood, hypersomnia, increased appetite, fatigue, higher risk of suicide and irritability.
Serotonin is an emotionally blunting substance, high levels can CAUSE depression or in people with increased sensitivity to serotonin increases, such as with overmethylation or those who have the MAO-L gene. If they don't cause depression at high levels, they will numb you out and make you feel like an emotionless zombie with no desire to do anything.
Ever read about serotonin syndrome?
How about just high serotonin? -High Serotonin Symptoms-
The following are symptoms of elevated serotonin in the brain:
Depression
Apathy
Passivity
Loss of motivation
Nasal stuffiness or congestion
Allergic-type symptoms and allergies
Cold or flu-like symptoms
Acne and other skin disorders
Insomnia and other sleep problems
Impaired intellectual functioning
Difficulty concentrating and learning
Poor memory; amnesia
Difficulty making decisions and acting on them
Difficulty making plans and implementing them
Procrastination
Muddled thinking; brain fog
Lack of desire or interest
Emotional flatness or dullness
Sexual dysfunction
Hearing loss or noises in the ears
Altered sense of smell; strange smell in nose
The depression associated with high serotonin is of a different variety from the
classical depression, which is most familiar. The typical symptoms of anxiety, low mood, pessimism, sadness, emotional instability, etc. are missing. For that reason it often overlooked, and nothing is done about it.
High serotonin lowers acetylcholine, norepinephrine, and dopamine in the brain and prevents the release of those neurotransmitters. Because of this, too much serotonin relative to the other brain chemicals results in a type of depression, albeit a different kind. Serotonin is a natural tranquilizer and pain reliever. It has a relaxing, calming,anti-anxiety effect in the brain. However, too much serotonin causes excessive nervous system inhibition (depression) with the above symptoms.
In addition, high serotonin is associated with age-related decline of health and increased susceptibility to disease, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, because of a decrease of growth hormone (and other hormones), which depend on norepinephrine and dopamine in the hypothalamus of the brain for normal pituitary function: http://www.ncbi.nlm....les/PMC2686323/
Once recognized, a high serotonin condition can be alleviated by stopping the use of a medication, a supplement, or food that increases serotonin in the brain. It may take awhile, but serotonin should gradually return to more normal levels. There are, however, instances when the amounts of serotonin in certain parts of the brain may remain elevated, and this can create long-term problems. In general, whenever norepinephrine and dopamine are depleted (I.e., as occurs with continual use of stimulants) the potential for serotonin to become too high increases.
Supplements that increase serotonin: tryptophan, 5-HTP, SAMe, St. John’s Wort, Gingko biloba, B-complex vitamins (esp. megadoses), theanine, vitamin D, zinc, magnesium
Foods that increase serotonin: protein, turkey, sugar and other carbohydrates, eggs, bananas, sunflower seeds, yogurt, chocolate, vitamin-fortified cereals (and other products), onions, garlic, flaxseed, yeast, coffee, green tea, white tea, alcohol (initially; decrease with long-term use)
Other things that increase serotonin: sunlight exposure, sleep deprivation, medications.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ImHo, SSRI's are a toxic drug family with many unannounced effects and a black box warning to be noted; May cause increased risk of suicidal behavior in adolescents.
Just Knowing the NeuroEndocrine systems, one can see why serotonin really is not all that and more.
If the majority of all serotonin receptors tend to either,
1.) Increase Cortisol,ACTH,Prolactin (5-HT1A,2A,2C,3,4 and 7)
or
2.) Decrease dopaminergic neurotransmission and / or glutamate and acetylcholine..probably histamine too.
Then this alone should draw alarm to people, who wants excessive cortisol, ACTH and prolactin release? I certainly wouldn't, hormones are delicate things, and causing a release of stress hormones and stress mediated effects (even if not apparent immediately) over time causes neuroendocrine disruption. This is inevitable with artifically elevated serotonin levels, especially.
Now to be clear I am not saying that people don't derive benefit from them, and that SSRI's don't have antidepressent or anxiolytic effects - they certainly do. It's a paradoxical effect however, and only by positive psychology and a relaxing of excessive excito-transmitter firing, are any feasible anti-depressant effects achieved.
Also the side-effects are often quite terrible, as is the half-life and withdrawal syndrome.
The problem is we never really know for sure, because many SSRI's also take other actions in the brain, at first being seen as selective SRI, then some later found to work through neurosteroid pathways (namely sigmareceptors;progesterone, pregnenoline etc)
Edited by Area-1255, 01 September 2014 - 04:50 PM.