Antidepressants and pregnancy are a dangerous combination. A mother taking Prozac, Zoloft or other antidepressants of this type are increasing their risk of bearing a child with autism. It is a significant risk; they are twice as likely to have an autistic child as a mother who stays away from these drugs.
And the danger increases when the mother takes the drug during the first trimester of pregnancy. In fact, these children are 4 times as likely to develop autism as a child with a mother free of antidepressants during pregnancy.
Dr. Nouchine Hadjikhani, an autism spectrum disorder expert, has urged women who are pregnant to “err on the side of caution.” Even animal studies show that exposing the unborn to such chemicals creates autism-like behavior.
“I think one has to be aware of the potential risks of having these types of drugs during pregnancy, and really think twice before allowing them during pregnancy,” says Dr. Hadjikhani. In 2010 she wrote a paper that theorizes too much serotonin during these crucial 9 months could be the cause of escalating autism in the population.
Besides the danger of autism, Zoloft has also been proven to cause severe birth defects in infants exposed in the womb. Currently, six new lawsuits have been filed against Pfizer Inc. The victims have stated that their babies all have birth defects due to Zoloft, which was prescribed during their pregnancies.
These suits were filed in West Virginia.
The infants suffered from severe heart defects, neural tube defects and craniofacial deformities as well as additional malformations. The cause was traced back to the use of Zoloft during pregnancy in all cases. The women took the drug as prescribed by their physicians.
Other devastating deformities have been recorded with the use of this drug during pregnancy. Among them:

• Anencephaly: Portions of the skull and possibly the brain have not developed and are missing at birth. The New England Journal of Medicine states this defect is seen 2.4 times more often in children born to a mother who took an SSRI such as Zoloft during pregnancy.
• Omphalocele: One or more abdominal organs are outside the body when the child is born. The New England Journal of Medicine states this defect is seen 2.8 times more often in children born to a mother who took an SSRI such as Zoloft during pregnancy.
• Anal Atresia: The child is born with an anus missing or in the wrong place. The only treatment is surgery. This risk increases 4.4 times with the use of SSRIs.
• Limb Reductions: The baby may be born with missing or deformed limbs. The risk is increased by 3.9 times with SSRI use.
• Club Foot: the child has a foot bent the wrong way. The risk increase for this birth defect is 2.4 times with SSRI use.

The real product of the large pharmaceutical companies is children with ruined health and families tragically shattered. The heartlessness of Pfizer executives (and others like them) is staggering.
In the late 1950s, thalidomide was thought to be a wonder drug to cure morning sickness in pregnant moms. But when a German newspaper reported over 150 babies were born with missing or flipper-like limbs, the makers of the drug finally stopped producing it in Germany. By spring of 1962, the drug was banned in most countries.
Will today’s pharmaceutical companies ever take responsibility for the lives they have ruined? It seems unlikely.
Antidepressants and pregnancy do not go together. Psychiatrists and Big Pharma will continue to push Zoloft and other SSRIs on vulnerable pregnant women, but it is possible to refuse their so-called “help” and get educated on the dangers.
http://wvrecord.com/news/s-4056-wayne-county/263725-six-more-wayne-co-suits-allege-zoloft-caused-birth-defects
http://birthdefectresource.com/birth-defect-causes/prescription-drugs/antidepressants/zoloft-ab/
http://scienceinsociety.northwestern.edu/content/articles/2009/research-digest/thalidomide/title-tba