Prescription Drugs and the BIG Scare

http://www.fnchiropractic.com/

OK.  Goofy.  Recently I made my own Wonder Hangers and it was that infomercial which inspired me and I thought it was a great idea.  Each ScottWondaHanga took me approximately twenty minutes to make at the price of about $2.33 each.  I made six of the things with two power tools, three hand tools and clear liquid nails.

One day I sneezed so hard that I lost consciousness.  Went to see a neuro, did an MRA (MRI with nuclear contrast media), and was sent to opthalmologist due to incidental finding of papilledema. Findings were negative and inconclusive.  Bills were probably pretty expensive.  Insurance paid.

Anyone notice all the prescription drug commercials? 

 

This morning I woke up around 5am after around four hour's sleep.  I've had it on my mind for quite some time to  watch different shows and sit there and list all the drug commercials which I usually tend to ignore.  I'm not sure, but the drug stuff seems to be about one in every three commercials.  Beer is pretty big business too, I guess, alongwith financial wars (investments), and cars - These four have got to be in the top ten categories unless you're watching Cartoon Network. 

So today I've had the opportunity to check out all of the favorite drugs out there and discover how many disease complexes I am suffering from and how best to treat the ailments (as long as I don't listen to the nasty, quickly spoken possible side-effects at the end of the ad).  We are a drug nation and a want-it-now country hooked on conventional allopathic western medicine.

By the way, do you believe that we are nearing the end of recession?  I agree with Beck that we are only beginning.  Kiyosaki says so as well.  I have only seen things getting worse.  Also Obama is a socialist/communist and I guess the words have now been twisted into "progressive" and so many people call it "liberal" which is just not accurate according to what our government is demonstrating today.  Yes, I watch a lot of Fox News.  Its the only one that makes rational sense.  The others have blinders on and/or they are just communists and fascists. 

Back to the drugs.  I began writing down the commercials last night and the drugs they are attempting to sell.  Started again at 5am and then went to office around noon and continued watching online while listening to the radio and flipping through the lame, lame, lame chick and old person magazines.  Geez these ads make you really believe that everyone is dead and dying and that we absolutely need-need to be on ten scripts each and become walking pharmacies.

Whatever happened to Thomas Edison and his statement that, "The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his or her patients in the care...in the cause and prevention of disease"?  Aah, its a long quote.  According to pharmaceutical companies they think that everyone has forgotten Tom's quote anyway.  They spend over four billion (4,000,000,000) dollars per year on TV advertisements alone just to make sure we forget intelligent statements like Edison's. 

Another Edison quote is probably one the pharm's would like to keep, "Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something". 

The pharms are currently pulling in somewhere near two hundred billion dollars ($200,000,000) per year.  Well...guess that looks like a small number now since we keep upping the Federal deficit into the trillions  - what is it, like, twelve trillion currently?  That is nuts.  The drug business is nuts and also all politicians need to have a swift banishing to some place like China (stupid communists joined together).  Send the communist politicians FedEx overnight via luxury one-way jumbo jets and tell them there is Louis, Dom, women and caviar onboard and they are being sent to a luxury resort.  Then drop 'em by parachute from 15,000 feet.

Okay, did you know that MD and prescription-related deaths per year amount to a now-calculated three hundred thousand (300,000) persons?  Allopathic related deaths per year amount to more than guns and auto accident deaths combined.  Top five causes of death in the USA are tobacco, alcohol, medical malpractice, traffic and firearms.  Most label death in terms of symptoms:  heart disease, cancer, etc. - but there are causes for those symptoms....i.e. tobacco causing cancer.....get it?

I'm a chiropractor.  Most MDs I've ever met don't necessarily recommend chiros.  I'm second in line for their pockets (2nd for the money and their Beamer).  You've heard the term "Follow the money"?  I've searched for deaths in chiropractic and I cannot find anything which is 1) a non-chiropractic source or 2) some guy not off his rocker and has independent peer reviewed research.  I disqualify chiropractic sources due to bias and loons get disqualified due to....well, I shouldn't have to explain that one.  What I do know is that the very low allopathic malpractice liability starts at thirty thousand dollars ($30,000) and most plans are much higher.  My malpractice policy is about one thousand dollars ($1,000).  And I get dividends from my policy for having no incident.  Aww, its just because the insurance company loves me so much!  Right, sure.  Chiropractic is one of the safest medical professions on earth. 

So there.  Back to the advertisements from television, magazines, radio.  After being inundated, I attempted to remember the ads I did not see but do remember.  I came up with Crestor, Fosamax, Plavix and Zelnorm.  What happened to these?  Maybe they are on one of those annoying attorney tort commercials by now- Vioxx, anyone? 

In the course of about one day, here are the prescription drug advertisements I viewed:

Actonel, Viagra, Nexium, Avodart, Valtrex, Prilosec, Wellbutrin, Zocor, Cialis, Boniva, Abilify, Alavert, Chantix, Effexor, Flomax, Nasonex, Aricept, Cymbalta, Restasis, Symbicort, Astepro, Norvasic, Lipitor, Gardasil, Januvia, Singulair, Yaz, Zicam, Spiriva, Lunesta.  Geez, that is thirty (30) different drugs.  Levitra never was there, thank God.

Okay so I must be suffering from COPD, BPH, ED, asthma, depression, sleep disorder, herpes, osteoporosis, smoking, sinusitis, ovarian cancer and high cholesterol.  I don't remember my other symptoms but at least maybe twelve of the problems is enough since I will have to take that many drugs to take care of it all.  I'm only sort of kidding as I do know a number of people who the docs have on five or more drugs.  The most I saw a patient taking was fourteen different meds given by three different doctors.  Quite a bill there for Medicare!  Government program anyone?

These advertisements post disclaimers.  Hmmmm.  Wonder why.  Makes the tort lawyers salivate in anticipation.  The disclaimer doesn't do much to decrease liability (CYA).  So the list has a number of options on side-effect possibility and many lists go pretty in-depth like this one from Boniva:

  "Important Safety Information

BONIVA is a prescription medicine for the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis. You should not take BONIVA if you have low blood calcium, cannot sit or stand for at least 60 minutes, have severe kidney disease, or are allergic to BONIVA. Stop taking BONIVA and tell your healthcare provider if you experience difficult or painful swallowing, chest pain, or severe or continuing heartburn, as these may be signs of serious upper digestive problems. Follow the once-monthly BONIVA dosing instructions carefully to lower the chance of these events occurring. Side effects are generally mild or moderate and may include diarrhea, pain in the arms or legs, or upset stomach. If you develop severe bone, joint, and/or muscle pain, contact your healthcare provider. Your healthcare provider may also recommend a calcium and vitamin D supplement."

That one was easy to take down.  I was surprised to see this ad since I think its Boniva and Fosamax which are the next ones we will see attorneys attacking.  Seems that the big offender is Fosamax, though, with many thigh/femur fractures showing up from users.  Ha, these two drugs are supposed to be meant to combat osteoporosis!  Go figure.

But, anyway, just about every side-effect disclaimer pretty much covers every possible related system in the body.  The drug company may as well just come up with one very good mass disclaimer to display with every ad they have out there.  But that would make things too easy.

Thats my beef.  I'm so sick and tired of these stupid prescription drug television advertisements.  What's worse is, excepting movie channels, most of the channels I enjoy watching seem to have the most of the ads.  I must be watching the shows that all infirms view.  Discover, Fox News, TLC, History, things like that.  Cartoon Network has cool ads.

This is a long one.  I finally wrote it because a patient recently asked me what I thought of Boniva.  Everything I wrote here is what I told her - except for my aside tangents maybe.  You put it all together, your life is big money, and the drug companies and MDs want you sick and they are mass-blitzing us with their crap.  You have to remember that you are what you think.  If they get you thinking that you are a dying individual, then they have won the war and you finally gave up a battle.  Do not let that happen.

Dr. Moller

http://www.fnchiropractic.com/

http://www.bodytherapyaz.com/

P.S.  Just so you know.  I am not necessarily totally anti-drug, just anti-drug campaigning.  There are some times when the stuff is needed.  The prevalence of use is in the major abuse area, in my opinion.  And most people need to get off their behinds and do something safely with their health rather than develop a super lame crutch.  Do something much greater with your health and be a conservative and wise consumer.