Posted on 07/30/2009 7:06:41 AM PDT by truthnomatterwhat
Recently, I was watching a TV commercial for a self-proclaimed breakthrough drug I was encouraged to “ask my doctor about.” As I was watching the ad all I could think about was how difficult it must be to produce an appealing promotion for a product that has so many devastating side effects. You’d have to be a marketing genius to peddle some of these drugs. One “pharmaceutical therapy” that aims to help people with insomnia sleep better at night, for example, comes with a laundry list of possible side effects, including but not limited to hives, difficulty breathing, swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat, impaired thinking, slowed reactions and drowsiness. The commercial admitted the drug can be habit-forming and stopping usage may cause withdrawal symptoms. By taking this drug, then, you can get a good night’s sleep but may wake up with hives and swollen eyes, unable to breathe or drive to work. Wow! Do you still feel you should call your doctor right away? If you do then the marketing team did an award-winning job with its campaign.
It may surprise you to learn that some drug companies are spending more each year on advertising and marketing than on research and development of new products. Roughly $60 billion dollars is spent yearly on illegal drugs in the United States, according to U.S. government estimates. These publicly-traded legal drug dealers, however, are now surpassing illegal drug revenues. Obviously, there are big bucks in the sale of legal drugs. Eli Lilly, maker of Prozac, for example, is a $61 billion company that sells its products in over 140 countries. And who hasn’t seen a commercial about Viagra? This drug is made by drug giant Pfizer, a $170 billion company. Forbes magazine reported that...
(Excerpt) Read more at thevoicemagazine.com ...
The reality is that there is missing information to make the decision.
If the were no side effects would one take the drug. The answer most likely would be yes. Are you one of those that would experience no side effects?
What percentage of people would expect to experience the side effects.
Ones initial thought is that you would get ALL the side effects but that is not true.
It would help if they would or could say 70% experienced no side effects but your situation would be different. Maybe they do, but we don't hear that part. A well intentioned article maybe but still misleading.
Liberals believe in being well medicated - and they support legalizing most everything. So, the MSM won’t care how many lives are ruined. They care about the “in” liberal cause de jour - smoking and eating.
I just can’t believe the sheer amount of ignorance that some people can demonstrate. I am a doctor that for 15 years has helped people with the drugs that you vilify. Have you ever suffered from insomnia or restless leg syndrome? Have you ever had to deal with a child that has ADHD. Obviously not!! We live in a time of true medical wonders. Yes, medications have side effects and risks. As mentioned above the government requires that any side effect occurring greater than 1% of the time be listed.(Did you catch that -1%) Life is full of trade offs. We accept the risks of certain things for their benefits. I drive a car everyday and accept the risk of an accident. What about all of the lives that are saved every year with high blood pressure medication and lipid lowering drugs? What of all the chemotherapy that wipes out the cancers and gives people a chance at life? If you want to remain ignorant and refuses good medical care that is your right, but how dare you criticize others, or for that matter the pharmaceutical industry that has brought us such incredible medications and treatments! If you want to criticize anyone turn your attention to the government who stands in the way of good treatments and slows progress by the ludicrous system we call the FDA. I had patients cry in my office when they banned Vioxx because it was the only drug that gave them relief of their arthritis. They were more than willing to accept the risks for the benefits that they had. How dare anyone take that freedom from them?
Eric Roth, M.D.
The Luddites of the modern world are constantly bitching and moaning about the evils of technological and medical advances ... do they not understand what "life" in this country was like 100 years ago?
Sure makes me want to wind back the clock .... /sarcasm off
I remember being on Effexor when I was fifteen. Caused insomina and anorexia. My parents were freaking out, yelling at me to eat and it wasn’t until my real mom pointed it out that they realized what was happening.
Obviously you've never known anyone suffering from this very real affliction. The drug companies "created" this? Oh, fer crying out loud. That's about as legitimate as Karl Rove controlling the weather. Where you people come up with this crap.....
The name's new, not the ailment :)
And good ol' quinine tends to work pretty well for that. It's cheap and safe to use, too :)
Good ol’ quinine:
Quinine Sulfate Oral Side Effects
See also Overdose section.
Headache, flushing, unusual sweating, nausea, ringing in the ears, decreased hearing, dizziness, blurred vision, and temporary changes in color vision may occur. Less common side effects may include signs of low blood sugar (e.g., sweating, shakiness, confusion, extreme hunger). If you experience these symptoms, promptly drink some fruit juice or have a snack, and call your doctor immediately. If any of these effects persist or worsen, tell your doctor or pharmacist promptly.
Remember that your doctor has prescribed this medication because he or she has judged that the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects. Many people using this medication may experience these side effects, but with frequent visits to your doctor, this risk can be reduced.
Tell your doctor immediately if any of these rare but very serious side effects occur: signs of a serious immune system problem (e.g., unusual tiredness, joint/muscle aches, unusual fever, butterfly-shaped facial rash, swollen glands), easy bruising/bleeding, signs of serious infection (e.g., high fever, severe chills, persistent sore throat), signs of a sudden loss of red blood cells called hemolytic anemia (e.g., severe tiredness, brown urine, pale lips/nails/skin, rapid breathing at rest), signs of severe liver problems (e.g., persistent nausea/vomiting, abdominal pain, severe weakness, yellow skin/eyes, unusually dark urine), decrease in the amount of urine.
Seek immediate medical attention if any of these rare but very serious side effects occur: chest pain, severe dizziness, fainting, fast/irregular heartbeat.
A very serious allergic reaction to this drug is rare. However, seek immediate medical attention if you notice any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction, including: rash, itching/swelling (especially of the face/tongue/throat), severe dizziness, trouble breathing.
This is not a complete list of possible side effects. If you notice other effects not listed above, contact your doctor or pharmacist.
Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. In the US, you may report side effects to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at 1-800-FDA-1088.
In Canada, you may report side effects to Health Canada at 1-866-234-2345.
Back in the day when it was on the shelf in front of the counter, it was rumored among teen-age women to induce miscarriage, as well.
But folks should by all means run it by their docs first :)
Exactly. Whoever thought heart medication could make hair grow on bald men?
As pointed out above all drugs have side effects. I am hard pressed to think of a human activity that doesn’t. The question is are the side effects worth suffering because the condition or ailment treated is far worse
People are funny. They want silver bullets to cure complex diseases without any side effects. Lots of them believe that's possible if we'd just let government control evil big pharma.
Drug companies will also incrementally modify their drugs after they've been commercialized. When they do this many times it's because they've found a way to alleviate or minimize some of the side effects.
The choice is ours. No one puts a gun to our head and forces us to take these things.
That's right. The advertising doesn't bother me nearly as much as leaving the choice for treatment entirely up to the MD. Greater awareness of options is a good thing.
We used mercury for styes and to prevent infection of cuts and scrapes. Bronchitis was treated with hot steam and codeine. There was no over-the-counter low dose corticosteroid cream, although there were steroid ointments on prescription that were greasy and irritating. Menopausal women drank Lydia Pinkhams Compound, which was about 40% alcohol. Heartburn was treated with baking soda. The treatment post cardiac infarction was total bed rest for weeks.
These are just a few items I personally recall from the 1940s-1950s.
I'm willing to bet the author doesn't have a clue what the drug industry expenses under the advertising and marketing line items. Why is this information even relevant? Does he want the government to control what they can spend on marketing and advertising vs. R&D?
US drug companies increased R&D spending from about $6 billion in 1980 (in 2005 dollars) to $39 billion by 2004. You won't see that information in the article. The assault on the US pharmaceutical industry continues and the left continues to depend on the ignorance of strangers to win.
Tonic water is not going to do a thing for the neurological condition aka Restless Leg Syndrome. There is about enough (100-300 ppm)quinine in the water to give that bitter taste, that’s all.
RLS is not just simple leg cramps. It is closer to the causes of Parkinson’s.
Simple leg cramps can be helped by eating a banana or an orange (potassium) and doing some stretching before going to sleep, remembering to point the heel, not the toe, while stretching the lower leg.
The only reason the old remedies even existed was that there were conditions that were less well understood and/or had no available treatment. As soon as a real solution arises, the old treatments disappear simply because they didn’t work or didn’t work very well or had negative side effects beyond what was (or sometimes was not) known about the common remedies.
My apologies. It sent my imagination into overdrive. Didn’t fact check. (No need to refer to me as “you guys”.)
SWEET. I have to get some of that stuff!
(Can you drink while you're taking it?)
Tonic water is not going to do a thing for the neurological condition aka Restless Leg Syndrome. There is about enough (100-300 ppm)quinine in the water to give that bitter taste, that’s all.
RLS is not just simple leg cramps. It is closer to the causes of Parkinson’s.
Simple leg cramps can be helped by eating a banana or an orange (potassium) and doing some stretching before going to sleep, remembering to point the heel, not the toe, while stretching the lower leg.
The only reason the old remedies even existed was that there were conditions that were less well understood and/or had no available treatment. As soon as a real solution arises, the old treatments disappear simply because they didn’t work or didn’t work very well or had negative side effects beyond what was (or sometimes was not) known about the common remedies.
Yes.
I have been taking blood pressure medicines for about 3 years now. I don’t like them because they make me feel a little dopey and have an effect on my memory that I dislike. But it is a lot better than chest pains and possible heart attack or stroke.
Also, I have had a prostate problem for years. About 8 years back I was prescribed a blood pressure medicine to help with this but quit taking it because of the side effects which I judged more annoying than the problem with the prostate. Last month I was given modern prostate medication that helps with that problem with virtually no side effects.
I occasionally give thanks to God for the gift of human ingenuity and the scientific method. The developement of effective pharmaceuticals has been of enormous positive effect to humanity. People forget that less than a century ago millions would die of infections and diseases that today we can cure in the overwhelming number of cases when the correct drugs are applied in the correct manner. I do not begrudge the drug manufacturers their profits but am thankful that conditions exist that encourage them to research and make breakthroughs that save more lives and alleviate more suffering. And I fear, very much, that government control of health care will curtail research and retard the discovery and developement of new drugs that could provide even more relief to those who suffer.
How about ‘overactive bladder’. There is a drug, (Detrol), which apparently keeps you from having to go pee, according to the commercials. I think they came up with this one because it makes such a good commercial. People are shown missing out on walks on the beach, getting stern looks from the boss for taking too many breaks, etc. Take Detrol and never have to go pee again.
I share your fear about more government influence over the drug industry. Countries with price controls don't produce new drugs. About ninety percent of all new drugs that come to market are discovered right here in the USA. Talk about being the last great hope...
Even so, I regularly debate "conservatives" on FR that want nothing more than to remove the profit motive from the drug industry. The I got mine screw everyone else attitude is disturbing.
Word is aspirin is going to be taxed under the new health plan because it’s white and it works.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.