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It's a somewhat depressing statistic: one in five Americans took at least one medication commonly used to treat a mental disorder in 2010, with women 25 percent more likely to seek out such drug treatment, according to a report released today from Medco Health, a healthcare company. The company surveyed 2.5 million insured Americans, meaning uninsured adults who don't have coverage for prescriptions weren't included. But the report still established a clear pattern: prescription drugs used to treat mental disorders are becoming more popular. "Over the past decade, there has been a significant uptick in the use of medications to treat a variety of mental health problems; what is not as clear is if more people -- especially women, are actually developing psychological disorders that require treatment, or if they are more willing to seek out help and clinicians are better at diagnosing these conditions than they once were," writes Medco'sDavid Muzina. Read More ...
