For those of you who haven’t heard of the ‘famous’ Xanax (our Lebanese readers can just skip the definition), it’s an anti-anxiety medication used to treat panic attacks and anxiety disorders.
In Lebanon, Xanax has turned into an over-the-counter drug as anyone is able to get it without a medical prescription. This is not, however, the only risk that the patient is taking. According to information obtained by MTV, hundreds of thousands of counterfeit Xanax pills were seized two months ago at the Beirut Port.
Nonetheless, suspicions still overshadow this case as we wonder whether the confiscated pills had been actually discarded amid the ongoing political and security chaos that is plaguing the country.
It’s no secret that a “genuine” Xanax can lead to addiction and depression if taken without a doctor’s prescription. Then what side effects would a counterfeit Xanax cause?
Analysis of the Harvard-WHO study revealed that economically challenged countries that suffer from political crises are highly susceptible to depression. Lebanon is the perfect example of such a nation, particularly given the general state of political and economic turmoil that has afflicted the country since 2005, compounded by last year’s Hezbollah-Israel war.
In an economically and politically challenged country such as Lebanon, where citizens have been proven to be highly susceptible to depression, the consumption of tranquilizers and antidepressants accounts for 15% of the global consumption. The World Health Organization, however, allows a rate that does not exceed 5%.
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