tranquilo
Bluelighter
You may or may not be aware that this week sees the broadcasting of an advertisement that looks like a public health info-vert. It is in fact a ploy to get obese people to visit their doctors who will then prescribe the drug Xenical. This drug helps you lose weight.
It does this by fooling your body into not digesting fats. Xenical has become a HUGE (sic) seller in the US. Straight to the consumer advertising means people visit the doctor and demand Xenical - and over-worked, unsupported g.p.s are only too happy to prescribe it.
But beware Xenical is only for the very fat and very brave. You will, probably lose 30lbs of lard - and most of your friends as well. I wonder if the following information (from the US packaging of the Xenical) will be available to Australian consumers:
"Because Xenical works by blocking the absorption of dietary fat, it is likely that you will experience some changes in bowel habits. These changes may include oily spotting, gas with discharge, urgent need to go to the bathroom, oily or fatty stools, an oily discharge, increased number of bowel movements, and inability to control bowel movements. Due to the presence of undigested fat, the oil seen in a bowel movement may be clear or have a coloration such as orange or brown."
SICK! But it still sells and I guess if you are a bloater, it sounds pretty good; you can tuck into that BigMac and as long as you are wearing an industrial size nappy you may enjoy it in the knowledge that you will gain no more kilos. I'm not being anti-bloater here - my point is that these drugs are being developed so we can live our lives with minimal knowledge or education. The highest proportion of obese people are from lower socio-economic backgrounds (exceptions being Australian media owners obviously). And governments want to help people lose weight because heart disease is now the biggest killer in the westernised world - not good for those straining health services.
A couple of weeks ago a British research team, Protherics, announced that they have developed the software to test 150 000 new pharmaceutical compounds a day. At present companies are limited to 10 000 a day. The implications are obvious: more of these 'life style' drugs; less spent on education and health; more profits for drug companies, ad. agencies and plastic food manufacturers (Nestle, Coke, McDonalds etc); fewer personal trainers
The above types of ads will become common place - they are going to sell you drugs by leaching into insecurities, fears and perceived failures. Drugs which won't be any sort of fun but drugs that will stop you from thinking, not because you are high but because there will be no reason to think. So think about this now and be prepared because this is the thin end of a massive wedge...by the time you are asking why you need a pill which helps you pay bills on time it will be too late.
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i know this is a bit off topic but i needed to get it off my chest
[This message has been edited by tranquilo (edited 09 May 2000).]
It does this by fooling your body into not digesting fats. Xenical has become a HUGE (sic) seller in the US. Straight to the consumer advertising means people visit the doctor and demand Xenical - and over-worked, unsupported g.p.s are only too happy to prescribe it.
But beware Xenical is only for the very fat and very brave. You will, probably lose 30lbs of lard - and most of your friends as well. I wonder if the following information (from the US packaging of the Xenical) will be available to Australian consumers:
"Because Xenical works by blocking the absorption of dietary fat, it is likely that you will experience some changes in bowel habits. These changes may include oily spotting, gas with discharge, urgent need to go to the bathroom, oily or fatty stools, an oily discharge, increased number of bowel movements, and inability to control bowel movements. Due to the presence of undigested fat, the oil seen in a bowel movement may be clear or have a coloration such as orange or brown."
SICK! But it still sells and I guess if you are a bloater, it sounds pretty good; you can tuck into that BigMac and as long as you are wearing an industrial size nappy you may enjoy it in the knowledge that you will gain no more kilos. I'm not being anti-bloater here - my point is that these drugs are being developed so we can live our lives with minimal knowledge or education. The highest proportion of obese people are from lower socio-economic backgrounds (exceptions being Australian media owners obviously). And governments want to help people lose weight because heart disease is now the biggest killer in the westernised world - not good for those straining health services.
A couple of weeks ago a British research team, Protherics, announced that they have developed the software to test 150 000 new pharmaceutical compounds a day. At present companies are limited to 10 000 a day. The implications are obvious: more of these 'life style' drugs; less spent on education and health; more profits for drug companies, ad. agencies and plastic food manufacturers (Nestle, Coke, McDonalds etc); fewer personal trainers
The above types of ads will become common place - they are going to sell you drugs by leaching into insecurities, fears and perceived failures. Drugs which won't be any sort of fun but drugs that will stop you from thinking, not because you are high but because there will be no reason to think. So think about this now and be prepared because this is the thin end of a massive wedge...by the time you are asking why you need a pill which helps you pay bills on time it will be too late.
*********
i know this is a bit off topic but i needed to get it off my chest
[This message has been edited by tranquilo (edited 09 May 2000).]
