TV advertising is PRO DRUG

[Guest guest]

Just found the following on William Campbell Douglas, MD's daily notes. The information is enlightening, even if maddening. We are being turned more and more into a society of drug pushers, to our permanent detriment.

We must learn how to control our OWN health with clean living, herbs, energy work, and good foods.

 

Linda

 

Daily DoseFebruary 25, 2003**************************************************************When they say TV is "like a drug," they're not kidding...An Associated Press article from this past year revealed that in just four years, between 1996 and 2000, the pharmaceutical industry increased spending on consumer-targeted TV advertising by a whopping 700%, from $220 million to $1.6 billion. Why? Because drug companies have finally figured out that marketing their products directly to you is a more effective use of their ad budgets than continuing to court conventional doctors who already believe in the benefits of prescription drugs.Business-wise, this makes perfect sense, doesn't it? Why should the major drug makers "preach to the choir" when they can harness the power of the boob tube to drive tens of thousands of potential new addicts-er, I mean users-flocking to their doctors to ask for their products BY NAME. The irony here is almost poetic: Drug companies using our dependence on TV to fuel our dependence on prescription medications... Now, don't misunderstand me-the kind, benevolent pharmaceuticals giants still spend tens of millions of dollars "educating" mainstream doctors about their helpful, harmless and reasonably priced patent medicines. It's just that now they've created a whole new sphere of demand on the consumer side of the fence. What's wrong with that, you ask? Plenty. For starters, the ads show only the benefits of the drugs, not the downsides-and the vague, brief list of possible side effects actually drives the sale as it invariably concludes with some phrase like "Ask your doctor for more details..."What's worse, a lot of these ads-especially the ones for allergies, joint pain and indigestion relief-actually convince people they're sick by listing symptoms that just about anyone can have on any given day. I mean, who among us doesn't deal with a little stiffness, heartburn or congestion once in a while? Does that automatically mean we're sick and we need drugs right away? These ads create the tendency for people to diagnose themselves with illnesses and identify prescription solutions in their own minds long before any doctor has examined them. These preconceived notions can make the doc's job harder-if he isn't already laboring under the same notions. Sad to say, most conventional doctors are, thanks to the "education" efforts paid for by drug companies. These are just a few of the reasons why consumer-targeted TV ads for patent drugs compromise the very foundations of the medical process, a process that's supposed to be sacred, objective, and progressive-not commercial. In my opinion, drug companies shouldn't be allowed to market their products directly to consumers at all, but especially on television. It's simply too powerful a medium, and it blinds people to safe, effective alternatives they might have considered otherwise. And given my typical anti-government stance (especially when it comes to drugs, natural cures and the FDA's double-standard in regulatory practices), you'll probably fall over backward when I say this, but...THERE OUGHT TO BE A LAW!

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