A collection of studies on Robert Whitaker’s website that show how benzodiazepines create worse havoc in the bodies of those given them:
Benzodiazepines/Anxiety
In the early 1980s, governmental medical authorities in the United States and the United Kingdom concluded that benzodiazepines were addictive and should not be used on a long-term basis. Studies showed that people withdrawing from the drugs often experienced greatly heightened anxiety and other distressing symptoms. But if people stay on benzodiazepines, long-term use may lead to worse anxiety, cognitive impairment, and functional decline. look at links to numerous studies here
Had to highlight one of the studies here that found:
Seventy-five percent of long-term benzodiazepine users found to be “markedly ill to extremely ill . . . a great majority of the patients had significant symptomatology, in particular major depressive episodes and generalized anxiety disorder, often with marked severity and disability.” These findings “are in line with the knowledge of a lack of efficacy of benzodiazepines in depressive and most anxiety disorders.” (emphasis mine) links to studies here
For extensive interpretation of these studies as well as a look at real people in case studies buy and read Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America by Robert Whitaker
For additional information on issues with benzos look here.