TV Drug Ads: Caveat Emptor

Television ads for prescription drugs - you know the ones: happy people living full active lives because they take some pill and then all the warnings read in 3 seconds at the end - are so ubiquitous and silly that they are increasingly the butt of jokes. But suppose the commercial addresses a health concern that you deal with or are concerned about? Can you rely on what you are being told by Big Pharma's Big Marketing department?

The first thing to remember is that there is very little education in a TV drug ad. They are not designed to give you the facts but to appeal to your emotions and motivate you to go and ask your doctor to prescribe their drug for you. Companies are required by law to disclose risks and side effects associated with the drug. But they cram the disclosure in at the end and read it so fast that does anyone ever really hear it? Not only that, but the amount of time devoted to disclosing these issues has dropped from 26% to 16% since 2016. In other words, you are given almost no opportunity to hear and understand the risks, let alone remember them. And this is deliberate.

Here are some things that you can do to protect yourself from this misleading and deceptive advertising:

Be Very, Very Skeptical

The legal risk of outright lies is probably enough to ensure that these commercials contain none. But remember there is an entire industry devoted to manipulating your desires and emotions and these ads do so powerfully. Pay attention and be especially aware of whether you are being given facts or just watching happy people being happy. At best these ads only offer some of the information you would need to make a good choice for yourself.

Do Your Own Research

Don't rely on the information presented in a commercial to guide your decision. Look into it yourself and use a more reliable source than a pharmaceutical company's marketing department. A good place to begin is on the National Institutes of Health's drug information page: DrugInfo.nlm.nih.gov/drugportal .

Enlist Your Doctor and/or Pharmacist

In order to pay the enormous cost of television advertising, most drug companies have cut back on the number of direct sales reps and educational support that they provide to doctors. Some doctors may have little more information than the same TV commercial you saw. Still your doctor is familiar with your health condition and is in a position to provide you with additional information and advice.

Don't forget about your pharmacist. He or she is an expert on drugs and is far more likely than your doctor to be up to date on the latest developments in pharmacy, as well as any potential risks, side effects or interactions with drugs you may already be taking. Ask. Few do and the pharmacist is very happy to help.

And don't lose sight of this very important consideration - your diet, exercise routines and emotional health can often make a bigger difference, more safely, than any drug. Don't expect a TV drug commercial to highlight this inconvenient fact.