You hear a lot about suicide and depression during the holiday season. We talk with Dr. Eric Caine, head of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester and a consultant to the President’s Commission on Mental Health, about suicide and suicide prevention. Do antidepressant drugs raise the risks of suicide or lower them? What preventive steps work, and what should general medical practitioners, or concerned friends and family, do? Dr. Caine offers lots of answers, and interesting discussion.

You can listen to the show directly — no downloading needed — by going here and clicking on the gray Flash player. You can download the file by clicking right here, and you can subscribe via iTunes by clicking here. A lo-fi version suitable for dialup, cellphones, etc. is available by going here and selecting the lo-fi version.

You can visit the Suicide Prevention Action Network at www.spanusa.org for more information on suicide or take a look at Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide, a book recommended by Helen.

Music is by Todd Steed and the Suns of Phere.

This podcast is brought to you by Volvo at www.volvocars.us.