A startling new study by Pediatrics Journal reveals the hidden pandemic fallout – antidepressant prescriptions for teens and young adults have exploded by over 64% compared to pre-COVID levels. This jarring spike mirrors the decline in youth mental well-being throughout the crisis and its aftermath. Most strikingly, the findings expose profound gender-based disparities underpinning this trend. For adolescent females between 12-17 years old, the rate at which antidepressants were dispensed skyrocketed by an astonishing 130% above pre-pandemic levels after March 2020. The situation was scarcely improved for young adult women aged 18-25, with the dispensing rate for this demographic spiking