Americans are constantly being bombarded by ads telling them that they need certain items. Currently, the media and pharmaceutical companies are pushing for the sale of various prescription drugs.
In an article published in 2008, Canadian health experts Joel Gagnon and Marc-André Laxchin, discussed this push for prescription drugs. Using annual statistics from 1996 through 2005, they found that pharmaceutical companies spend more than twice the amount of money on promotion, $57.5 billion, than on research and development, $28.7 billion.
During many TV commercial breaks there is often one ad with an individual praising a particular drug, calling it a “miracle” and essentially pleading for Americans to try it. Although these commercials are blatantly over-exaggerated, Americans give in because they expect instant cures and satisfaction.
Evidently, the pharmaceutical companies’ promotion money is well spent, for now many Americans are rushing to their doctors for they feel that they need these drugs. It is as though these promotional ads have trained Americans to think that they cannot make it through everyday sadness without them. It is no surprise that the usage of various medications has increased significantly over the years. Specifically, the usage of antidepressants, which include Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil and Lexapro, doubled from 1996 and 2005.
Numerous studies have been done on the increase of antidepressant prescriptions and have made some shocking discoveries. In a 2007 study by New York University, researchers found that one in four people taking antidepressants were not actually depressed. Rather, they were simply going though regular life troubles. In addition, it was discovered that only three-quarters of antidepressant users was received the prescription for reasons approved by the FDA.
So what is going on here? Possibly, physicians and psychiatrists are no longer willing to take the time and make the effort to use other methods for treating depression. This seems highly possible for only 3 percent of antidepressant users receives therapy, according to a study mentioned in the 2006 Archives of General Psychology.
Perhaps, many doctors are unconcerned about the potential side effects and are more concerned about providing an instant “cure.” Thus, they just run through the appointment, scribble a prescription and that’s that. Evidence suggests this may be the case. According to a 2006 study carried out by UCLA, two-thirds of doctors did not tell their patient the duration, dosage or frequency of use and only one-third warned their patient of the adverse side effects.
Shockingly the International Review of Psychiatry, four out of five Americans are taking an antidepressant and 70 to 80 percent of antidepressant patients are at risk of mild-to-serious symptoms. With statistics like this, how can physicians and psychiatrists be tossing around prescriptions? This does not make sense at all. We shouldn’t have to be the ones playing doctor and figuring out what is best for us. The reason that we go to doctors’ is because of their expertise, but it appears they are not acting in our best interest. Every day, people are dying because of this, including the well-known Michael Jackson.
This is a scary situation and fortunately some doctors’ licenses are being suspended due to over prescribing and giving their patients drugs for no reason. Let’s just hope more doctors realize what they are doing and change their ways, and quickly.
