TV network ads can make one quite ill
I have been watching the evening network news and I have come to the conclusion that if the news isn't depressing enough, the advertising will get you.
In a recent session, I counted 18 ads in 30 minutes.
Fifteen were for cure or relief of the maladies of our body.
Two were for future network programs: a doctor/hospital series and a segment on the next night's news on "Why health insurance companies are not paying."
What's with tagging these body breakdowns with code letters -- PAD, ACS, ED, RLS, etc.?
How about a new drug that will cure the need for using acronyms we don't understand?
I notice from the ads that if I suffered from ED and took the right medicine, women would apparently smile at me more.
I now know that I can use a pill, drink a liquid or use a nasal spray to fight "mucus." I've learned that some of the possible side effects of medications sound a lot worse than the problem.
One laxative can cause diarrhea. Sounds like they need to fine tune that one a bit.
I recall one side effect was having the urge to gamble, although they didn't say anything about the odds of winning.
Several ads said to "ask your doctor if XXXXXXX is right for you." I'm glad I trust my doctor to prescribe what is right for me.
After all, when I go to the doctor, there are always one or two pharmaceutical representatives waiting to see him, to tell him what is right for me and I may get one of the free samples.
The only ad that was not health-related was one for a drain cleaner.
On the other hand, maybe it was related to cleaning out the toilet after or during the cure.
No wonder the younger generation gets their news elsewhere.
Tom Degler
Geneva