TIDAL WAVE of drug commericals

Anyone else notice the tidal wave of drug commercials on TV these days?

Seems like every other commercial on network television is a drug commercial. That, or an insurance company commercial.

Interesting metric isn't it? Drugs, or insurance.

This is just crazy!

Then you have a 60 second drug commercial, and the last 30 seconds of the commercial are all about the side effects...

'Side effects of (xxxx drug) may include...growing a second head, violent thoughts which might make you eat your children, the desire to polish your trailer hitch with the placenta of a rabbid goat, diarreah, headache, nausea, homicidal tendencies, screaming in the middle of the night, blurting out streams of obscenities at family gatherings, prank phone calls, uncontrollable pharting, theft, delusional behavior including hollering at babies, cancelling your cable, buying obscure things on the internet, repeatedly smashing your thumb with a hammer and liver cancer. There may also be other side effects. If you experience these or other symptoms, contact your medical professional (or the medical examiner) immediately. (xxx) drug may not be for you.'

WTH???

I stopped watching TV quite some time ago and I only pay for Netflix and Hulu.

The last time I had cable there were three types of commercials.

1. Penis enlargement

2. Food products

3. Drugs.

a reply to: projectvxn

That must have been a long time ago!

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Just goes to Show you how the Pharmacutical Industry has such a Powerful Influence over Politics around the World . Pedal the Poison , but become Free of Law Suits with Excessive Listings of Side Effects which in Most Cases are Worst than the Cure they are Offering for Certain Maladies. Commercials Presented to the Gullible Public that Make them a Buck is All that Matters to these Low Lives............

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
Anyone else notice the tidal wave of drug commercials on TV these days?

Seems like every other commercial on network television is a drug commercial. That, or an insurance company commercial.

Interesting metric isn't it? Drugs, or insurance.

This is just crazy!

Then you have a 60 second drug commercial, and the last 30 seconds of the commercial are all about the side effects...

'Side effects of (xxxx drug) may include...growing a second head, violent thoughts which might make you eat your children, the desire to polish your trailer hitch with the placenta of a rabbid goat, diarreah, headache, nausea, homicidal tendencies, screaming in the middle of the night, blurting out streams of obscenities at family gatherings, prank phone calls, uncontrollable pharting, theft, delusional behavior including hollering at babies, cancelling your cable, buying obscure things on the internet, repeatedly smashing your thumb with a hammer and liver cancer. There may also be other side effects. If you experience these or other symptoms, contact your medical professional (or the medical examiner) immediately. (xxx) drug may not be for you.'

WTH???

You should come to the UK. Mainly headache meds advertised on TV here. Occasionally a condom or feminine hygiene advert too, but nothing like the states. I was actually shocked at how much drug marketing is done there and pretty much on every commercial break.
That's coming from a visitor and in no way do I mean any disrespect to the USA in any form

We are just totally bombarded with commercials way too much! Humanity loses a couple hundred of lifetimes everyday from the combined time wasted on commercials.

And the worst parts are, companies that usually can afford big commercials are ALREADY RICH ENOUGH in my books...
also, I don't know if it's like that everywhere, but commercials are TAX DEDUCTIBLE!

Corporate socialism to make us waste our time and makes the rich richer.

That's not counting the millions of people working in that domain that to me is a total waste of everyone's life.
I guess you can all tell by now, I don't like ads...

Well, I don't mind informative ads when a new product or new company comes along but, seriously, if I liked Budweiser, I would buy some. They don't need to shove it in my face everyday.

I actually saw a commercial today (watching the football game) about a pill for constipation for those on "opioids".

I'm sitting there thinking to myself; if you're on morphine, demorol, codeine (or other opioids) probably the last thing on your mind is a cheeseburger and you're probably either hospitalized or laid up, so advertising such a drug to the general public serves what purpose?

I can speak from experience; opioids DO cause constipation (at least with me), but as I noted above whenever I was perscribed them I was usually was either badly injured (somehow) or just came out of surgery and the only thing I wanted was some water and to return to semi-elliptical orbit around Pluto.

a reply to: TerryDon79

We may not have the commercials, but we do have an awful lot of Prime Time docu's telling parents they need to med their kids!

a reply to: TerryDon79

I do agree. I've traveled the world and not seen anything like this onslaught of drugs.

It's just endless! And, these are not puppy drugs either, they're powerful.

It's very telling; seems like the message is; 'drug everyone into submission'.

Even when percribed pain meds, I rarely ever take them. In fact, I can't even remember the last time.

I don't know what doctors you guys have, but if I try to suggest a medication I saw on TV I have almost a zero chance of being prescribed it. The doctors I've been to don't like being "told" what to prescribe, and they usually try just about everything else under the sun (meditation, relaxing baths, diet changes, exercise) before writing a prescription.

That's just my experience with a few GP's. *shrug*

originally posted by: VoidHawk
a reply to: TerryDon79

We may not have the commercials, but we do have an awful lot of Prime Time docu's telling parents they need to med their kids!

I tend to be looking at something online during adverts more nowadays. But I certainly agree with what you're saying. Pharmaceuticals are a big business and unfortunately won't go away any time soon.

I haven't. I don't watch TV. I remember a few years back (before Obamacare) when I used to watch some TV there seemed to be health insurance commercials all over the damn place. Apparently the health insurance companies were desperate or something. I dunno. Maybe that explains why we ended up being ordered to buy into the protection racket.

originally posted by: MystikMushroom
I don't know what doctors you guys have, but if I try to suggest a medication I saw on TV I have almost a zero chance of being prescribed it. The doctors I've been to don't like being "told" what to prescribe, and they usually try just about everything else under the sun (meditation, relaxing baths, diet changes, exercise) before writing a prescription.

That's just my experience with a few GP's. *shrug*

I have experience with strong drugs first hand. Had an op on my lower back in 2003 and was barely able to function with the painkillers I was on for the next 6 months. Also, my wife has cancer (hereditary) and she has now been put on a mix of Valium, tramadol and gabapentin for a disc tear. I think docs here are more inclined to give you what you need rather than want as they see fit. But in saying that I also believe there's no set guidelines and each GP uses their own discretion on what they will and won't do.

a reply to: TerryDon79

And I would somewhat agree, but finish you last sentence with...

",...depending on how much they are being paid, and by whom."

Unless you're gambling (at a casino), I don't even know of a place where you can go spend a single night and spend $25,000 dollars except at a hospital. Not even a high end nudie bar will charge you that much!!!

I say this from real-world experience too (hospital wise).

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
a reply to: TerryDon79

And I would somewhat agree, but finish you last sentence with...

",...depending on how much they are being paid, and by whom."

I don't completely agree with that, but completely understand it. I'm talking national health GPs here which are paid by the government. I wasn't talking private health care who, I believe, are basically walking chemists.

AND, sadly, I can say from experience....dying is WAY expensive!!!!

Dad passed away last year, and they (hospitals, hospice and what have you) pretty much took everything Dad put away for Mom...EVERYTHING! It was like; "sit there and rot, old woman, but we'll get our money!!!"

I always told him (Dad) "spend it all, on you and Mom; don't worry about us!". I don't think Dad figured he'd spend it that way!

edit: and then they play this game with you about "how much is life worth. Well, it would be worth a lot more if you didn't make it cost so damn much with fear mongering, unecessary tests and ways to fatten up your bank account!!.



(sorry, it's a hot-button for me).

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
Unless you're gambling (at a casino), I don't even know of a place where you can go spend a single night and spend $25,000 dollars except at a hospital. Not even a high end nudie bar will charge you that much!!!

I say this from real-world experience too (hospital wise).

This is one thing that I have never fully understood. In the UK we have a free national health service (NHS). How come places like America don't have this? I know population are different, but I was always raised that all people are entitled to a free education and health care (again in the UK). So it does baffle me that so many other countries aren't doing the same

Yes I've noticed a great influx of these types of commercials as well, and I hardly even watch TV.

What I find funny about it is, we have all these new meds with life changing, debilitating, and sometimes even fatal side effects for things such as hair loss, erectile dysfunction, etc...
And the Government is worried about legalized pot?

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

I'm sitting there thinking to myself; if you're on morphine, demorol, codeine (or other opioids) probably the last thing on your mind is a cheeseburger and you're probably either hospitalized or laid up, so advertising such a drug to the general public serves what purpose?

Actually there are millions of people prescribed these drugs every year, and many are long term patients who stay on pain meds for years, if not decades.

This was a huge deal in some countries, where Oxycontin was outright banned because of how addictive it is [its basically synthetic heroin] yet the drug companies lied to get it classified [at least medically] as a 'lower risk' opioid.

So I imagine they are targeting those people.