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Guest column

We've become nation of pill poppers

By DOUGLAS SPANGLER
Published January 26, 2005

I am going to tell you a real-life story. But I want to tell it at the end of this column. Stay tuned.

A recent nationwide story revealed that more than 40 percent of Americans are taking at least one prescription. About one in six people takes three or more prescriptions. The story also said that prescription use is growing like wildfire.

As a legendary entertainer used to say, "Folks, you ain't seen nothing yet."

It is nearly impossible to go to a doctor's appointment without seeing several drug company representatives in the office. If you come around lunchtime, they are probably offering a free lunch to everyone who works there.

It is also nearly impossible to watch TV at any hour of any day without seeing commercials touting the latest prescription drug for the latest disease, and urging you to go to your doctor to ask for it.

It is nearly impossible to get away from the drumbeat telling all Americans that "new, tougher" guidelines have been developed for blood pressure, triglycerides and cholesterol.

Guidelines that have been in effect and have been trusted for years are being lowered. The "new, improved guideline" for blood pressure, for instance - the gold standard - is now 120/80, which usually is achieved naturally only by lean teenagers and those in the most superb physical shape. Anything above those readings, even slightly, is now considered a "prehypertensive" reading.

So what do all of these impossible circumstances mean for most Americans? Probably that the percentage of Americans taking prescription drugs will keep rising dramatically, perhaps with a goal of getting nearly every adult American, and most children, on some sort of pill.

And if there are not enough old diseases for which to take a pill, don't worry, there are many new ones coming around the bend.

You can now take a pill for slight social anxiety, and a recent TV report says that an estimated 8-million people have adult attention deficit disorder - a whole new market for drug companies.

Let me make it clear that I agree that there are miracle drugs that have brought relief to many millions of Americans. My wife and I each take one prescription pill every day. We are grateful for the benefits of such drugs, as, I am sure, most people who use prescription drugs are.

But isn't it time to question what is happening here in our country? Shouldn't we hesitate to take new drugs rather than clamoring for them and pestering our doctors to give us one more pill to add to our arsenal?

Being as educated as we can be is the only real way to see that our health is being taken care of. Should we, for instance, just roll over and take a pill because our blood pressure does not meet the new guidelines? Or should we instead weigh the pros and cons of taking yet another pill? Shouldn't we explore more natural ways of taking care of our health problems, such as the radical idea of eating less and exercising more?

Only by really taking charge of this precious area of our lives can it be said that we are not being led by drug companies or even by our physicians down a primrose path of drugs with many possible side effects.

What was it Ronald Reagan once said? "Trust, but verify." Now that's a prescription we can all live with.

And now for the true story. I recently found an unused prescription written by my former doctor. It was four years old. I was having some trouble with my neck. The prescription was given to me, but I said I wanted to try to cure the neck stiffness through exercise and taking nonprescription medications.

Well, the neck straightened out after many months of stretching exercises, and I no longer have to take even nonprescription medication for it.

The unused prescription that I decided not to fill? It was for Vioxx.

Douglas Spangler is a writer and retired university administrator who lives in Palm Harbor. Guest columnists write their own views on subjects they choose, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.

[Last modified January 26, 2005, 00:13:15]