Can the drug companies just STOP ALREADY with their commercials?
74Drug Company Commercial
[Actor running and leaping through a field of roses with music playing in the background.] "Are your allergies [erectile dysfunction,high cholesterol, depression, irritable bowel,enlarged prostate] preventing you from living the high-flying, money-making, business-running, perfect-family, incredible life you always knew you could have if you just didn't suffer from before-mentioned condition? Are you ready to leave said condition behind you and catapult foward into the new, amazing world where everyone farts rose petals and swims through piles of gold? Then ask your doctor about this drug, it will solve your problem, and guarantee you a life of unimaginable bliss..."
[as music continues playing & the actor/actress continues to dance through roses while their beautiful family meets them and begins dancing too]"...side effects may include: headache,dizziness, loss of an arm, congenital heart failure, bleeding hemmrhoids, and death...ASK YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT THIS DRUG AND HOW IT CAN HELP YOU."
Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration...sorta
I watched the evening news tonight & in one 3-minute commercial break there were 5 perscription drug commercials. FIVE! Now, understand, I don't have a problem with modern medicine, I don't have a problem with these drugs, necessarily, as I'm sure they have helped & even saved the lives of many people. That said, do we really have to have them shoved down our throats while watching the evening news?
I really, really have a problem with the commercialization and marketing being done by drug companies today. I don't want to hear about erectile dysfunction medications. I don't want to hear about enlarged prostates. I don't want to hear about vaginal creams and allergy medications. Notice, drug companies aren't running commercials about cancer medications. They're targeting the audience watching whatever show is on, telling them to ask their doctor about these drugs on their next visit. They're trying to SELL YOU.
This is a relatively new thing, you know. This wasn't what we used to see on commercials. We used to see commercials for movies and local eateries and toys (not that those aren't still out there, but really...). Now, we're getting played by drug companies to become addicts of whatever they're selling. Remember when you went to the doctor and the doctor would TELL you what medication you should be trying, when you didn't already have a list of three drugs going in that you could ask him about? Wasn't that kind of nice? To just, I don't know, trust that the doctor would take care of you and give you what you needed based on his assessment of your health?
I don't know, maybe I'm off base, but I really don't like seeing these 8-gajillion commercials when I'm watching my news. What do you think?
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I do hate seeing so many drug commercials during prime time. How about a commercial about old proven ways to take care of things? Like many herbal medicines. Do we really need to suffocate our bodies with even more potentially hazardous chemicals?
As far as the questionable content (erectile dysfunction, vaginal, std stuff, prostate, etc...) I'm surprised they're allowed to show them during the evening news. Most channels use 6PM for their evening news, and that's family time. Some have 8pm and 10pm news, so I'm not sure which one you're using. But even then a lot of children (13-) stay up to 10. If it was the midnight news, then I guess I woudldn't mind - they have to advertise their products sometime and it'd be better at a time when fewer children watch tv.
Oh I agree completely! I hate commercials period--so that is where I stand with all this anyway. Now commercials take more of the time then the programs themselves and Squimpleton is very correct in her assumption of what is seen by children. And they wonder why our kids are drug addicts. Not only drugs but surgar too. They wonder why pre school children are so heavy now --well just look at all the cereals and other foods they advertise--they are all surger pushers. Ever watch what they have on the TV during the day ( th kinds of commercials) when those pre schoolers are home and watching TV--or better yet what those kids are watching during the day when they are off school or home sick. Somehow we should have a voice to say what kinds of things we want on our TV sets and at what times they are allowed.
This was a national news program, but it was on one of the major stations (NBC, ABC, CBS...I'm not sure which) at 5:30pm. I was exaggerating a little, but there was an erectile dysfunction commercial, at least 2 for allergies, & I can't remember the others.
A couple weeks ago I went to an event for my friend that won the American Gladiators, & we watched her finale show on a giant movie screen. Right in the middle of this program there was a commercial for some sort of vaginal cream. It was just awkward hearing it LOUDLY projected over a sound system while roughly 200 people suddenly started trying to pretend they weren't listening.
Thank you both for your comments, really, its just sad that I think its just going to get worse from here.
Thank you, too, Lady Guinevere, we really should have more of a voice about this stuff.
Oh yeah because they will use that thing of freedom of speech stuff. There has got to be a limit! I really don't care to know about those things--that is to be between the person and their doctor and the other half or spouse--not broadcast to the world. Some of those meds are --well I would rather have the disease then the side effects.
Case in point--I used to be on coumadin for many years because of blood clots in my mahor veins. Well I was off of those meds for 10+ years. I go to a new doctor and he does a check up on me--had a hernis so I had to go to a doctor. Anyway it comes out that he wants me back on the coumadin--why---the drug company wants me to spend the money and he must get some retribution for that. I refused it. I also did a study on some other natural blood thinners and all the paperwork that I gave him with all that research as he walked out the door of the examining room was thrown in his little round trash can. I haven't been back to him since.
Now on the lines of chemical drugs and natural ones. I have been hearing this for years--they are trying to suppress all herbal products from the market. Thier reason--they are hazardous to your health. What does that tell you about Chemicals, drug companies and the health and Doctor's in general? It's not good!
While I'm sure some herbal medicines can be harmful to your health (if the substance was harmful to begin with, like poison for example). I'd still want to at least have the option to take herbal. Heck, if those medical companies care so much about money, they should find what some nice herbal medicines are and package them as "easy kits". (kind of like cake mixes and baking...).
Also I don't like how on TV, and movies, and obviously commercials you can see so many people/characters are quick to grab a pill for anything - even a small thing. Yes, headaches and backaches are annoying. But is it really worth to take a pill everytime you suffer an ache? Is it really worth to risk extra symptoms (some worse than the original disease...), to risk endangering your overall by injecting chemicals, to risk potential addictive behavior? Personally I don't like to take any medicine unless I absolutely need it. A cold? If it lasts more than 2 weeks then I'll take syrup..A headache? I'll listen to soothing music it'll go away in 30 minutes...Body aches? I'll do a small massage, maybe even use some coconut butter lotion. If it's not urgent, then there's no need to drug myself.
My mother is one of those people who take pills for anything and she's the one that gets sick most often in this house. Obviously her dependence on pillls isn't letting her natural immune system get stronger. Whereas my dad and I are both naturalists, and we rarely get sick. Pattern? I think so...
Yes we are killing ourselves with anti-germ this and that! They seem to think we are getting sicker because of more germs and bacteria when in fact we are killing our own defence system by killing all germs and bacteria. The way we build up our immune systems is to be exposed to them in the first place. I am not talking about the real killer diseases, but simple things like colds and flu and other nuances----this isn't coming out right so I hope you can understand what I am getting at.
Oh yes, I understand. My dad had a long rant about how he hated anti-germ spray commercials aimed at overprotective mothers who don't know better. Then he went on to explain about how we need to get sick every once in a while, especially for common sicknesses, so that we can build a resistance.
But it really is so genius of the medicines companies..People buy anti-germ sprays to make themselves feel safe, then they eventually get sick and buy pills, which in turn reduce the amount of resistance the body does, which means it doesn't learn to protect itself as well, thus leading to more diseases...what a beautiful evil cycle.
thumbs up..great hub
Great hub and you are right. This is one of the largest problems with western medicine we are diganosing ourselves and the doctors are letting us due to all the different commercials etc. It is amazing how much money and lobiests can do... prevoiusly these commericals were illegal, now the pharm companies can be on TV but smoking can not. (I am not for smoking but I don't see it being any more dangerous than the side effects they list on the medications.)
Thanks for saying what I have been thinking.
Thank you bob, Marye, & blogging for your comments. I just want to say, for the record, that I think Doctors are amazing, that they go through a TON of training and hard work to be able to treat and heal the patients they're working with. I also want to say that without many of the drugs that have been developed over the last century, we would have shorter lifespans and more childhood deaths (penicillin, anyone?) So again, I don't have a problem with medicine, but I do have a problem with the commercialization of many perscription drugs.
But, LG & Squimpleton, you both make good points about the germs and germ products out there--many people are overly scared of germs and sickness, when, in fact, our bodies need to learn how to build up a resistance to some of these things.
I too hate all the drug commercials. Drug companies are presenting quick fixes for every ailment, ache, pain or phobia known, or made up. It sickens me. People are looking for a quick fix instead of working on healthier living so their bodies can fight off germs and heal.
In total agreement here with everyione..have addressed this myself in many comments..It is a crying shame and discusting...Thanks for a great hub...G-Ma :o) hugs
Now how about those commercials the lawyers are putting out about the drugs that had killed someone or maims them......Ambulance Chasers! This is why our Doctor visits are so expensive. Yep the Evil Cycle Squimpleton was talking about. When is it going to stop?! Don't sue the Doctor--sue the Drug Company.
OMG I hate those "did you or a relative suffer from [insert medicine name]?" commercials too! It's like: no one forced you to take the medicine. Doctors usually try to tell you about alternate methods, and always give the option to not receive treatment. I think it's common sense that if you're trying out a relatively new drug, not all side effects might have been found yet. (though that's actually a flaw in the US's medical plan. For example in certain countries, they have harsher study requirements which means less drugs available - but at least you can feel good that the medicine's been thoroughly tested, and that the side effects are no worse than the disease)
Careful reading this hub may cause: diarrhea, vomiting, shortness of breath, impatence, change in vaginal secretions, hearing loss, palpatations and a rare and uncommon side affect experienced by some were; heart attacks, stroke, seizures and blindness...... (spoken really fast by the narrator guy)..... and oh crap now I can't see the key's to type!!!
Great Hub, and so very true. You know when I was a kid the worse commercial out there was one I didn't even understand at the time. It was the two ladies riding on a little boat together wearing sun dresses and one says to the other, "do you ever get that not so fresh feeling?" My how times have changed.
~It all makes sense until it doesn't
Ha! I hope that's not what happens when people read this hub! Thanks for the comment!
Visit http://stopdrugads.org and submit a letter to Congress requesting action be take to reign in all of the direct to consumer drug ads. Spread the word! Maybe if enough of us write something will be done.
Thanks!
Jerilee Wei says:
15 months ago
Maybe I'm showing my age, but commericals once paid for our free television programing and they didn't take up more time than the show itself. Now, the commericals are more frequent and last longer amd we get pay the cable company or satellite company dearly for the priviledge of watching them.
Now, we get to watch shows with young impressionable children that push medicines as something you demand from your physician and revolve around health and body functions, you might not want to be discussing with children. Not only do I not want to see tons of commercials, but I don't want to explain to a ten year old what erectile dysfunction is. Good hub!