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Healthy Skepticism Library item: 16773

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

 

Publication type: news

O'Hara M
Dangers of giving air time to TV's drug pushers
The Guardian 2009 Nov 11
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/nov/11/mental-health-health


Abstract:

Aggressive advertising of medication provides cause for concern, writes Mary O’Hara


Full text:

Pretend, just for a moment, that this is a television advert. If it were, it would probably run something like this: “Are you depressed? Do you wake up each morning feeling listless, or unmotivated, or like life isn’t worth living? Depression hurts, so why not do something about it? Ask your doctor about the patented prescription anti-depressant this ad is promoting. It could change your life.

“If you experience suicidal thoughts or feel weak or faint after taking this medication, speak to your doctor immediately. If you drink too much alcohol, are obese, are taking other medication or have liver problems, this medication may not be for you, so make sure to tell your doctor. It can come with side-effects, including fatigue, dehydration, erectile dysfunction, incontinence. . .”

Can you imagine sitting down in front of the TV of an evening and being deluged with ads like that? Well, that is exactly what viewers in the US get. We Brits love to mock American television ads as unsophisticated, but what really irks, what really makes for a feeling of profound discomfort when living here are the ads aiming to persuade viewers that a particular “brand” of anti-depressant is the one they should be marching into their doctor’s office and demanding. Almost every other country in the world prohibits this kind of “direct to consumer” advertising of medication.

There are plenty of reasons why such ads are a cause for concern – not least that they are paid for by corporations with an interest in making a profit from sales. The argument has also been made that such advertising creates an artificial demand for specific products or “brands”. Why, otherwise, would someone request a brand-name product that was pharmacologically no different than cheaper, generic alternatives?

But there is another fundamental objection that many mental health professionals and advocacy groups have reiterated time and again: ongoing exposure to these kinds of advertisements may lead to the impression that depression can be alleviated only with pharmaceuticals. The fact is – and, remember, this is something the British government has adopted almost as a mantra – that alternatives to medication for mild to moderate depression, such as talking therapies and even exercise, can be effective, and are popular either as a substitute for drugs or as a supplement to them.

Yes, there are debates about whether GPs have the time, training or inclination to look to these alternatives. And, yes, there are issues around whether, for all its rhetoric, the government puts its money and policy priorities where its mouth is on talking therapies.

But even if you buy into the notion that there is nothing wrong with direct advertising to let consumers know what products are on the market, surely you would have to acknowledge that, in the absence of any kind of counterbalance to the pharmaceutical promotion, viewers are being given a wildly distorted picture of the treatment landscape.

There is evidence of a correlation between the rocketing number of prescriptions in the US (they doubled between 1996 and 2006) and a more than 100% rise in advertising spending over the same period. The situation is, of course, likely to be much more complicated than these figures alone suggest. It may be the case, as some research suggests, that people have simply become less embarrassed about being put on anti-depressants, and are therefore more likely to ask their doctor for them – with or without exposure to advertising.

A report published last month, by research firm Datamonitor, on the “anti-depressant drug class” market forecasts that “blockbuster brands” are set to face new challenges from generic (ergo, cheaper) products as many drug patents expire in the next five years. If so, it’s highly likely that the big brands will fight back with even more advertising.

For now, at least, it would appear that the only real alternative in the US is to do what those perky kids on the UK children’s TV show Why Don’t You? once advised: switch off your TV and go out and do something less boring instead.

 

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You are going to have many difficulties. The smokers will not like your message. The tobacco interests will be vigorously opposed. The media and the government will be loath to support these findings. But you have one factor in your favour. What you have going for you is that you are right.
- Evarts Graham
See:
When truth is unwelcome: the first reports on smoking and lung cancer.