“Expert or Shill?” NYT editorial http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/opinion/30sun2.html which follows an earlier NYT story (this one http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/25/health/2…ta=y&pagewanted=all ) about the close ties between a famous Harvard psychiatrist, Dr Joseph Biederman, and drug companies.

The editorial states that:

“internal drug company e-mail and documents that surfaced in a lawsuit have sketched out what looks like an unsavory collaboration between Dr. Biederman and Johnson & Johnson to generate and disseminate data that would support use of an antipsychotic drug, Risperdal, in children, a controversial target group.”

And:

“The company also drafted a scientific abstract on Risperdal for Dr. Biederman to sign — as if he were the author — before it was presented at a professional meeting. And it sought his advice on how to handle the uncomfortable fact, not mentioned in the abstract, that children given placebos, not just those given Risperdal, also improved significantly.”

I suppose I’m tired of reading articles which trade on words such as newer, better, safer and the like. How many times have we read articles claiming that second generation anti-psychotics were safer and more effective then first generation medications? Similarly, reporters told us that the newer anti-depressants were so much better then then those which preceded them. We have since learned that these claims were generally unfounded. The price of such reporting was ultimately paid for by those of us who invested ourselves both emotionally and financially in medications which failed to achieve what was reported.

Everyone loses when journalists trade credibility for expediency by placing unquestioned reliance on claims which need to be questioned. And this is a price that society can not afford now or ever.

I was so pissed off at the New York Times recently that I wrote a letter to the editor.

They haven’t published. Will you? All the people I want to reach read you.

Dear Editor,

‘Radio Host Has Drug Company Ties’ by Gardiner Harris published last Friday is a textbook example of appalling research and a gross oversimplification of all things considered.

Pharmaceutical company connections to Dr. Fred Goodwin and Mr. Bill Lichtenstein are not news.

1. The Internet – Dr. Goodwin’s research papers: During the decade that The Infinite Mind has been on the air, the Internet has been readily available in America. Dr. Goodwin is a public figure. His entire professional life is searchable on the Internet, and each research article discloses his professional ties with pharmaceutical companies.

Mr. Harris did not do basic Internet research to write his article.

2. The New York Times and Bill Lichtenstein: I searched the keywords “The Infinite Mind” on the New York Times website and found Bill Lichtenstein describing the origins of The Infinite Mind radio show. Here’s an excerpt from that article published on August 12, 2001 and titled, ‘TELEVISION/RADIO; On an Expedition Through the Mind:’

“…Working out of his apartment, he started raising money for a series of public radio documentaries on subjects he felt had received grossly inadequate coverage: manic depression, schizophrenia and depression. They were well received and won numerous awards; he met Dr. Goodwin while producing the program on manic depression. By 1998, with money from various private and corporate foundations — including several unrestricted grants from pharmaceutical companies — he was able to launch ‘The Infinite Mind.’”

Please read the full article to see that he in that last sentence above refers to Bill Lichtenstein. The article is found in your archives right here: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9402EEDD1F3CF931A2575BC0A9679C8B63

Mr. Harris did not search his own employer’s database to write this story.

3. Another source of truth that Mr. Harris neglected is Manic-Depressive Illness: Bipolar Disord ers and Recurrent Depression, 2nd Edition, Dr. Fred Goodwin and Dr. Kay Jamison, 2007. In that heavy book, Dr. Goodwin himself discloses his involvement with pharmaceutical companies:

“During the time that this book was in preparation, Dr. Goodwin received research support from George Washington University Medical Center, the Foundation for Education and Research on Mental Illness, the Dalio Family Foundation, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Solvay and Eli Lilly and unrestricted educational grants to support the production of the book from Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squi bb, Forest, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Janssen, Novartis, and Solvay. He is not a shareholder in any pharmaceutical or biotechnology company. He is a partner in Best Practice Project Management, Inc.”(Pg. x)

The work of Dr. Goodwin’s life is a living testament.

1. The Infinite Mind: Regular listeners know the shows are not pill popping infomercials. Topics include grief, the food-mood connection, circadian rhythms, left-handedness and humor. Please take a look through the archives and see why the creator, Bill Lichtenstein, is fighting so hard for his creation’s second life: http://www.lcmedia.com/mindprgm.htm

2. Lectures: Dr. Goodwin’s thoughts, ideas and opinions are out in the open. Feel free to take notes, ask questions or make recordings.

3. Personal treatment: Dr. Fred Goodwin is my physician. Dr. Goodwin has been helping me endure and prevail over my manic depressive illness for the last 27 of my 46 years. Dr. Goodwin recommends that I take lithium, Tegretal, Trileptal, Synthroid, and Seroquel as prescribed. He encourages my wellness by advising that I:

-Put family first
-Sleep 8 hours at night
-Exercise
-Practice yoga
-Use a light box in fall and winter for SAD
-Take multi vitamins
-Take omega 3 fish oil (Costco brand)
-Eat a low carb diet (South Beach)
-Stay in psychotherapy, but live forward
-Attend peer support group
-Update advance directive
-Life Chart
-Journal

The American health care system works very well for me. I am one of the lucky few.

Issues raised in and around The Infinite Mind program on antidepressants last spring matter to us all. Why is NPR pulling the plug on a talk radio program that sparked a national conversation? I’d really like to know. You are the watchdogs. Please do your homework.

Sincerely,
Moira Wait

Bipolar Support Group