pharmaceutical companies

[lovepeace]

Hi all,

I would like to get some opinions on something that has been on my mind lately regarding pharmaceutical companies.

So my question is…… do you believe that the side effects of taking some medications are intentional, designed to keep people sick and dependent on there medicines or do you believe any side effects are just a by product that cant be helped and these companies really are doing all they can to make people better while still making a profit?



Anyway, enough said, I would love to hear what others think about this.

 

[PouringRain]

Hi all,

I would like to get some opinions on something that has been on my mind lately regarding pharmaceutical companies.

So my question is…… do you believe that the side effects of taking some medications are intentional, designed to keep people sick and dependent on there medicines or do you believe any side effects are just a by product that cant be helped and these companies really are doing all they can to make people better while still making a profit?



Anyway, enough said, I would love to hear what others think about this.

This is your first post, I noticed, so welcome to the forum.

You question is very broad. Was there a particular medicine you were concerned about? The problem with painting such broad strokes is that the answers are often dependent more on cases.

Your question about side effects keeping people dependent on meds..... I don't think the majority of schizophrenics would tell you that they like the side effects of their drugs, nor that those side effects are what keeps them downing them. The side effects of some of the drugs out there for schizophrenia are so awful that it is actually difficult to get people to take their meds, but the meds do help the individuals.

On the other hand, ask people who have become addicted to drugs like oxycodone, hydrocodone, etc. and they will gladly agree that the side effects of the drug is what encouraged them to continue its use and got them addicted.

You can see where the question is not easily answered. I do not believe that the side effects of drugs are intended to keep patients using the drug and keep the pharmaceutical companies in business. There is a reason why drugs, such as the addictive ones listed above, are not sold over the counter and have precautions when prescribing. Most doctors will not hand you a prescription for one of those if you simply went in and complained of chronic back pain (for example). Have surgery, then you can get a prescription.

I do believe the side effects are something that can not be helped-- at the moment. I added "at the moment", because there is constantly new research going on to find drugs that are more effective, have less side effects, better treat the specific problem, etc. The companies are always seeking better pharmaceutical methods to treat illness.

In your last question you bring up "profit". That word is the dirty word that often is the problem, and the problems are not even things you mentioned above. Things like "kick backs", which are illegal. Pharmaceutical companies do need money-- money to fund research, money to pay their employees, money for the insurance, etc. Another problem relating to profit is sometimes the push to get new products out fast. This can be a problem, because it can cause companies to not be as rigorous in researching the drug, but at the same time it is risky (and potentially more costly), because it can lead to recalls, lawsuits, etc. I just wanted to note that I am not knocking medical research on new drugs-- as the research is very strict in methods and analysis, and very good. I am only saying that the potential for problems exists (due to the need for profits).

One problem in our society that has to do with your question about keeping people using meds, is completely unrelated to the pharmaceutical companies. It is the sad fact that in our society we look for quick fixes to problems, which leads to overmedicating. Have a headache? Pop an aspirin (or NSAID, or acetaminophen, etc.). That is our answer for everything in our society. We don't want to wait 10 days for the antibiotic to work,no, we want a z-pak-- three day cure. The problem is our drive-thru society that wants everything (including cures) faster than a speeding bullet. (For me personally, I almost never use drugs unless absolutely necessary. I use natural home remedies, herbal remedies, or just wait it out. I take nothing for headaches. I leave low fevers alone, because a fever is actually our body's natural defense and is good up to a certain point.)

 

[Woodrow]

All medications will have side effects. This is not necessarily planned or desired. A simple fact. A foreign substance is entering your body, your body is going to try to reject it. That is the most common reason for side effects.


Drug research is the major expense drug companies have, it can cost many millions of dollars for a drug to be developed and it is not always profit motivation that causes the high prices, but the need to recover the cost of developing the meds.

As far as unnecessary prescriptions this falls back on some not very noble doctors who enter the field of medicine mainly for profit.

I get frustrated at the field of health care, but overall when I look back over the years. The general health of people in just my lifetime has improved. I can think of numerous diseases that no longer pose the threat they did when I was a child such as Small pox, diphtheria, whooping cough, measles, mumps, polio, and others. Not very long ago, in fact less than 70 years ago, ever family had relatives dieing from those diseases every year. Life expectancy world wide has increased at least 10 years since the discover and availability of drugs. When I was 5 years old I had my tonsils removed, without any effective anesthesia or pain relievers, I still remember the pain and trauma of that. That is something most children of today will never face because of the drugs developed in the past few years.

As far as addictive drugs. So far I see no way around it in the case of pain relievers. Even today the most effective pain relievers are either made from opiates or from synthetic opiates. Opiates are addictive, natural or synthetic, so most pain medications are addictive. A person they are prescribed to has to carry the responsibility of using pain relievers only as intended and only when really needed to curb any addiction to them.

The use of drugs is a 2 way street. For proper control it requires scrupulous, trustworthy manufacturers and educated users of the drugs. There needs to be some level of patient responsibility and the user has to take some self control to prevent addiction.

 

[mrquestion]

SSRI'S are an example of pharma companies lieing and decieving the public. SSRI's temporarily relieve depression but in the long term you can expect irreversable neurotoxicity. Go into the doctors with temproary low mood and you could find yourself addicted to prozac