FDA to advertise FAKE blood pressure pills

[derketchup]

Pretty interesting!

FDA To Advertise Fake Blood Pressure Pill // Pharmalot

Why? So the agency can determine whether the images in the ads actually distract consumers from paying attention to required safety warnings. After the ads run, the FDA plans to survey 2,400 consumers who 40 years and older to gauge their responses.

The FDA intends to create several ads for the fictitious high blood pressure drug using different images and text on the screen while a narrator reads risk info. Some visuals will focus on benefits to determine if that diverts attention from safety warnings, Bloomberg News writes, adding participants will be asked questions about the ads and their attitudes toward what will appear to be a new med.


You may recall that, last May, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing on direct-to-consumer advertising in which Duke University linguist Ruth Day, who lectures on the psychology of language, testified that drugmakers use various tactics to highlight a drug’s benefits and downplay risks, including matching fast speech to visual effects.

The example she cited: an ad for Schering-Plough’s Nasonex allergy drug that featured a bumble bee flying around as side effects were listed, but hovered when benefits were discussed. “All of these wing flaps and wing flashes and sparkly things essentially divided the attention of the viewers…and thus led to decreased knowledge” of possible risks, Day testified.


The FDA is “responding to criticism of many of us that the risk information is underplayed” in ads, said Steve Findlay, a health-care analyst at Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, tells Bloomberg. “It’s unfortunate that this has taken so long, but I think we’ll probably learn some valuable things from this.”

[sati769leigh]

i am not sure what they intend to show. since we already should ALL know about advertising techniques. wow. thanks for sharing . do people really fall for all that stuff?

[derketchup]

i am not sure what they intend to show. since we already should ALL know about advertising techniques. wow. thanks for sharing . do people really fall for all that stuff?

Yes. Yes they do.

[DavidKing]

Cool, can't wait to see if walmart comes up with a generic $4 version.

[Cynthiabutterfly]

Since DH and I are both ADD, we always get up and do stuff during the commercials, so we are usually hearing them but not seeing them. That's when we realize how stupid those shouting car commercials are, and we hear all those diarrea, dizzyness, stroke, death, etc. side-effects.

[CareyP74]

i am not sure what they intend to show. since we already should ALL know about advertising techniques. wow. thanks for sharing . do people really fall for all that stuff?

I don't think the point is to educate us on the techniques, rather, to show how effective the techniques are, so that there can be tougher laws made against the practices. It is especially important in adds for drugs with sever side effects.