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Waterways in Ohio is polluted with Prozac
13/Sep/2006: Fluoxetine hydrochloride, popularly known by its brand name ‘Prozac’, the most widely prescribed antidepressant drug, is ending up in streams and rivers, polluting them and endangering aquatic life forms. Ohio is suffering from this problem, with many species of the endangered freshwater mussels (mollusks inhabiting lakes, rivers and creeks) threatened further by the ‘Prozac’ in their habitat.
Human body absorbs most of the drugs it intakes and excretes the rest along with other waste products of metabolism. The excreted drugs end up in a river or a stream along with domestic sewage, as the current sewage treatment methods do not have the capabilities to separate drugs from the sewage. A few drugs are known to alter the hormone system in fishes turning male fishes in to females.
A study carried out by scientists from the federal government in South Carolina has shown that ‘Prozac’ makes the female freshwater mussels to release their larvae early, eventually killing them as pre-mature larvae cannot survive on their own. The results of this study is alarming and it could lead to testing of water for drugs like ‘Prozac’ before reintroducing endangered freshwater mussels in to Ohio’s waterways, under the current conservation program.
Drugs can be removed from domestic sewage by adopting advanced treatment processes but they are very expensive and add to water bills.
Kesavan Siva
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