In everyday life, we hear the triumphant music of various advertisements playing, all the way from O’Reilly Auto Parts, Wingstop, to Skyrizi. 

In spite of the different advertisements that American lives are infused with, direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising is the most popular, as its main goal is to market and advertise pharmaceutical products directly to consumers and or patients, with some of these ads being Lady Gaga advertising for migraine medication, or even a random person walking backward and explaining to viewers about their depressing life before taking a medication. 

All of them revolve around this big idea that because of this “certain” medication, you can participate in activities that you missed out on before. Though this can be true for some medicines, you have to acknowledge the clear line between being able to help all problems and only some. 

Pharmaceutical ads are created based upon two categories: one being the product claim, and the other being the reminder.
The product claim essentially names the drug, the condition it treats, and goes over the benefits and risks of the medicine. Though most of the risks mentioned are gone over rapidly at the end of the ad or typed in a small font, which can be hard to read for many viewers.

And the reminder only goes over the drug’s name, but does not mention what the drug is used for. Due to the fact that the creators of the ad already believe the viewers know what the drug is for. And because of this, they are excluding important risk information. 

Having said that, drug companies participating in DTC advertising do encourage individuals, as they can empower viewers to learn more about their health and focus on ways in which they can improve their own lives.

But then all of a sudden, drug companies do not have the time to explicitly talk about how a drug works, the cost of it, or even how it compares to other pharmaceutical drugs that help the same symptoms and have fewer risks. 

Due to this, many doctors have had to open up to patients regarding the drug being asked for,  but specifically the side effects and processes that aren’t explicitly stated within the ads, making it less likely for patients to actually take the drug, and instead go for something less expensive and more effective. 

This is why we need to realize that an ad is just an ad. As many of the advertisements’ main goals are to sell the product, and not to benefit the consumer. 

So, if you are interested in purchasing a pharmaceutical drug, it is best to talk to your doctor about it and ask if other options have fewer risks and are not as costly; Rather than going on a whim, thinking that a drug you never researched would be the best option for you.