October 11, 2007

The New Pharmaceutical Generation

By Stan Dyer

We can hardly open a magazine or turn on the TV anymore without running into an ad for some new pill designed to cure or relieve just about anything. It seems as though doctors and pharmaceutical companies have all of America "running for the shelter of her mother's little helper". Now, I admit that there have been great advances in medicine and new drugs do help many people, but are all these "medications" necessary? What do we know about side effects? Why do ads "whitewash" disclaimers? Are there other questions we need to ask? Is this the new "Pharmaceutical Generation"?

Back in the 60's, The Jefferson Airplane sang, "One pill makes you larger, and one pill makes you small, and the ones that mother gives you don't do anything at all", and we thought they were singing about "recreational" drugs. Today, male enhancement drugs actually claim to make us larger while diet pills claim to make us small. The ones that mother gives us still do nothing at all, but what an arsenal she has! She doesn't even need to visit the doctor.

Take a walk down the "medicine chest" aisle at the super market or stroll by the store pharmacy and you will know what I mean. There are rows of creams, medications, pills, treatments, remedies and vitamins enough to make any snake oil salesperson green with envy. In some respects, the onslaught is new, but, in other respects, it is just a page out of history.

There was a time in American history when there were no regulations on drugs. People openly and freely used cocaine, heroin, opium, marijuana, LSD and even alcohol. Many of the miracle elixirs and treatments of the time used these now regulated drugs as their main ingredients. They may not have cured anything, but people sure felt better about their ailments, at least in the short term. In the long term, the number of side effects and potential side effects was sufficient for the country to move toward regulation. So, what has changed? Do we know that today's, next generation elixirs are any more safe? Remember, there was a time when even doctors saw little harm in using those now regulated drugs, even as many of them fell victim to addictions or worse. There also was a time when doctors schooled in Galenic tradition believed balancing the four humors was the path to restoring good health. Doctors were wrong about that tradition and they may be wrong about this one. Time will tell what society learned from the past about side effects, and how closely we were paying attention.

In almost every ad, there will be some microscopic writing or a quickly spoken blurb outlining the "known" side effects. It'll be something like, "If hair starts to grow on your tongue, you develop a third eye, or your head falls off, discontinue use and consult a physician". That is just for the "known" side effects, and there might be other "unknown" ones yet undiscovered. We have to wonder if we might just be better off living with our original ailments instead of taking five more pills to relieve the side effects from taking the first one. If pharmaceutical companies were as serious about helping people as they are about making money, they would not be trying to hide or diminish information on known side effects as well as the potential harm their products can cause.

Now, I am no doctor and I have never studied medicine, but I am a student of history. This may be a new age, but the similarities to the past are startling. No matter what doctors or pharmaceutical companies want us to believe, they are neither smarter nor more gifted than their predecessors were. They, just as we, are still human and prone to human error. We have to take care of ourselves as much as we rely on medical professionals to help us. If we buy remedies at the store, we need to read the labels and know what to expect from using proper dosages. If we get prescriptions, we need to know what we are taking, how it affects our bodies, and what the side effects are. We cannot assume that all our troubles will disappear after taking some small, expensive pill. We need to find out if other, more natural ways to relieve our symptoms exist and we cannot be afraid to seek out second opinions. If this is the new Pharmaceutical Generation, we will not "go ask Alice when she's ten feet tall". Instead, we will go ask our doctors, but never assume they are ten feet tall; they are just people too. Ultimately, we are all responsible for our individual health. Asking the right questions and taking the right steps will go a long way toward helping ensure our long, happy lives. If this is the new Pharmaceutical Generation, let history remember it as the one that learned from the past and benefited from the experience. Here's to your health! Here's to your future!