Stand back and watch the P.R. spin as a new study in a peer-reviewed journal finds that antidepressants make "virtually no difference at moderate levels of initial depression to a relatively small difference for patients with very severe depression."

In an article published in PLoS Medicine, researchers doing a meta-analysis looked at 47 published and unpublished clinical trials, and found that depressants attained clinically significant levels of efficacy "only for patients at the upper end of the very severely depressed category."

In other words, if you have anything short of the upper end of severe depression, a placebo might do as well as or better than an antidepressant.

Now, to be clear, I would never suggest that anyone out there read this or any blog, and then suddenly go off their medication. Nor am I a fan of Tom Cruise so let's take that right off the table.

In fact, I hope I don't disappoint your need for advice if I mention that I'm not your doctor and I'm not making any clinical recommendations -- though it's widely known that because of the effect on brain chemistry any alteration in medication dosage should be done gradually and under the care of a practitioner.

However I will point out that gentle and uplifting supports which some find helpful in low-grade depression relief, such as exercise, certain herbs, counseling, guided imagery, relaxation, prayer, (or hey, even that unscientifically verified behavior of talking with a friend) don't have the side-effects of medication.

These side-effects have been known to include changes in brain chemistry, and potential for suicidal ideation, violent urges, loss of libido, and other goodies -- as well as the risk of harmful interactions with other drugs, as occurred in the death of Heath Ledger. So choose your placebos wisely.

The irony here is that conventional medicine routinely dismisses soft touch approaches as "mere placebos." Therefore, what a surprise to find prescribed drugs inside the Placebo Club, that feel-good purgatory reserved only for natural substances developed by the earth.

Now that the Placebo Club is getting crowded, perhaps it's time to consider whether some of those easily accessible approaches might warrant additional study. Indeed many have been studied, even though Nature doesn't get the same grants, let's face it.

Still, there's one underlying question. Clearly, it's the medical aim of prescription antidepressants to act upon the neurotransmitters and thereby to correct chemical imbalances in the brain that contribute to depression.

So do these drugs actually balance brain chemistry? Or do they merely intervene in brain chemistry in a way that could potentially perpetuate or worsen any imbalance?

Neurologist Fred Baughman, Jr. M.D. cites Dr John D. Griffith, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, who as far back as 1970 testified at a Congressional Hearing that, "Every drug, however innocuous, has some degree of toxicity. A drug, therefore, is a type of poison and its poisonous qualities must be carefully weighed against its therapeutic usefulness."

The risk of toxicity to the brain, the locus for mood and mental function, is something to ponder, especially since there are health approaches that balance brain chemistry in a gentler manner.

Over the last seven years, clinicians and researchers have developed diagnostics and protocols to measure and support key neurotransmitters, like serotonin and dopamine. (FYI: The former are what antidepressant SSRIs act upon.) First, they measure neurotransmitter levels and then customize targeted amino acid supplements, which nourish the brain with the building blocks of protein. On the biochemical level, these are options to consider. (For more info, you can go to: www.health-journalist.com)

Beyond the biochemical, if you or someone you know is suffering from depression, the further question is: "What in our world of suffering is causing you pain?"

Whatever it is, you need to acknowledge it and then access all the best "placebos" you can find. Whatever brings real joy, makes you feel a tad better about yourself, moves you to care, or to reach out and act, go for that placebo.