SKIP TO MAIN CONTENT

'Prozac inhibits fish sex drive'

The popular anti-depressant Prozac can inhibit sexual activity in fish if it seeps into waterways, according to a Canadian study published Tuesday.

Goldfish_bowl_generic_Getty_100922_B_1966032182

2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AFP


Skip to article content

Led by Vance Trudeau and Tom Moon of Ottawa University's biology department, researchers found that male goldfish exposed to Prozac did not respond to sexual advances.

In nature, female goldfish release chemicals called pheromones to indicate to males that they are ready to mate.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Male fish would normally detect the chemicals just as humans smell odors, and then stimulated to breed with the females would release their sperm to fertilize the eggs.

But the male goldfish exposed to Prozac did not respond to the pheromone and so did not release their sperm.

"Even when the potent female sex pheromone was in the water, male goldfish exposed to Prozac did not release sperm and therefore could not breed," Trudeau said in a statement.

The study was published in the journal Aquatic Toxicology.

In an earlier study, the same researchers found that high doses of fluoxetine, the active chemical in Prozac, not only destabilized sex hormone levels in female goldfish, but also slashed estrogen levels in the blood.

"As these effects of Prozac are found in both male and female fish, we must now consider Prozac-like pharmaceutical products as environmental pollutants that cause sexual dysfunction in fish," Trudeau concluded, noting the drug has been detected in sewage effluents around the world where it is sold.

Prozac is taken by more than 54 million people worldwide.


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world