BrainStuff Classics: Is Prozac Endangering Crabs' Survival?

When we take medications, we sometimes excrete chemicals that get flushed into our oceans. Learn how fluoxetine (Prozac) is chilling crabs out -- which isn't great -- in this classic BrainStuff episode, based on this article: https://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/prozac-water-ocean-crab-behavior.htm

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey
brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum here with another classic episode from
our archives. We hear a brain Stuff are huge proponents
of managing your mental health. However it works best for you,
whether that's through lifestyle changes, some kind of talk, therapy,
or medication. But because of the many medications that humans take,

(00:25):
we also need to take care of how they may
affect the environment. This episode is a study in Prozac
and crabs. Hey there, brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbam Here. Forty
years have gone by. It's the debut of the popular
antidepressant flu oxytine, popularly known by the trade name prozac.
It's in a class of antidepressants called s s R

(00:47):
EYES that's selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. They give the brain
a little boost in serotonin, the chemical in the brain
thought to affect happiness. After all this time, it's still
the most effective and popular antidepressant on the market, and
experts say it's not getting replaced anytime soon, and since
demand for the drug is rising each year, it looks
like more fluoxetine will be in our medicine cabinets and

(01:09):
as a result, that means we'll have more fluoxetine in
our environment, and researchers want to know what it's doing.
It's not news that we ingest all kinds of chemicals
oral contraceptives, antibiotics, mood enhancers, and even caffeine that end
up in our toilets since our bodies can't entirely metabolize them,
and after they're flushed, chemicals like fluoxetine end up in
rivers and streams, and after that in the oceans. What

(01:32):
effect that these chemicals have on ecosystems once they show
up isn't well understood, but one sixteen study found that
even small doses of the drug can render the notoriously
aggressive Siamese fighting fish uncharacteristically chill. A new study published
in the journal Ecology and Evolution examines the effect of
fluoxetine on shore crabs on the Oregon Coast and finds

(01:53):
exposure to the drug might be making them careless in
their foraging habits. A Portland State University research team exposed
shore crabs in a lab to trace amounts of fluoxetine
at levels that have been detected on the organ shore.
Over the course of sixty days, they found these crabs
forged more during times of the day they typically stay hidden,
exposing them to the threat of predation. These crabs also

(02:16):
fought more with others in their species, sometimes killing or
being killed in the process. A researcher, a Lease Grantic,
a professor in Portland State University's Department of Environmental Sciences
and Management, sudden to press release the changes we observed
in their behaviors may mean that crabs living in harbors
and estuaries contaminated with fluoxetine are at a greater risk
of predation and mortality. Further research is needed to learn

(02:39):
how this and other pharmaceutical waste will affect our oceans
and what we can do about it. But for now,
you can help a little by contacting your doctor or
pharmacy to dispose of any unwanted medications instead of throwing
them in the trash or toilet. Today's episode is based

(03:02):
on the article Prozac making its way into oceans might
be affecting crab behavior on how stuff works dot Com,
written by Jesselyn Shields. Brain Stuff is production of I
Heart Radio in partnership with how stuff works dot Com,
and it is produced by Tyler Clang four more podcasts
from my heart Radio. Visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.