Among developed countries, only the U.S. and New Zealand allow direct-to-consumer advertising by pharmaceutical companies and boy, do they take advantage of this opportunity! You cannot watch television with seeing ads for pharmaceutical products.
The FDA relaxed its guidelines on radio and television advertising in 1997, and the boom took off. In 2012, spending on traditional media (mostly TV) advertising by the pharmaceutical industry was $3.2 billion and by 2024 it hit $7.5 billion.
As eyeballs turned from broadcast TV to social media, pharmaceutical advertising followed. In addition to the $7.5 billion spent on traditional broadcast media, pharma ads on social media hit $19.5 billion in 2024.
Why do they spend so much money on these ads? Because they work. People hear about new “wonder drugs” and ask their doctors about them.
Product claim ads, the majority, give the drug’s brand name (in large print) along with its generic name, the condition it treats and its benefits and risks. The benefits are up front and emphasized while the risks typically go by rapidly at the end. Cost is never mentioned.
Not surprisingly, there is no obligation for the ad to specify how the drug works or if there are competing drugs for the same condition that are safer or cheaper.
A fascinating study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association two years ago found that advertising expenses were much higher for drugs of limited benefit than for those with greater clinical benefit.
What should you do? If you think you have the condition the drug is supposed to help, it is perfectly OK for you to ask your doctor about it. They are in the best position to know if the drug might benefit you, if it is safe for you given any other medical conditions you have and medicines you are taking, whether there are better and/or cheaper drugs to use instead and if you can avoid the need for any drug by making lifestyle changes.
I must note that doctors are also heavily marketed by big pharma and not immune to the siren call of glossy ads and free lunches brought by pharma’s marketing representatives.
Remember, the purpose of any advertisement is to sell products. This is as true for pharmaceutical ads as it is for ads for cars or vacation time-shares. The primary goal of pharmaceutical advertising is not to help you but to sell more drugs, so take the claims with a large grain of salt.
Edward Hoffer MD is Associate Professor of Medicine, part-time, at Harvard.
What Does The Doctor Say?
By Dr. Edward Hoffer