According to current U.S. law, pharmaceutical companies may only market drugs for their FDA-approved conditions. That means if a product has only been approved for use in adults, it cannot be suggested for use in children.
Big Pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) decided laws and safety aren’t really that important.
GSK influenced doctors to prescribe the antidepressant paroxetine(brand name Paxil) to kids and teenagers for years, despite it never having been approved for use in those age brackets by the FDA. That is what some circles would call “illegal.”
Why would doctors do that? Well, GSK funded a study which claimed to show that the drug was “well tolerated and effective” in kids.
A following study, not funded by the company, came to wildly different conclusions about the safety and efficacy of Paxil in teens and children – it was found to have serious side effects and even make children suicidal.
So, GlaxoSmithKline got a fine for misleading doctors to prescribe a drug for off-label, unapproved use.
And now, Big Pharma wants the law changed so they can freely advertise drugs for whatever purposes they want, without FDA approval. Two companies have sued the FDA for violation of their First Amendment right to free speech.
But, we the consumers, don’t have the right to know anything about the drugs they want us to take, other than that Big Pharma thinks its good for us to put money in their pockets.
Now I see in my practice, other providers recommending anti-depressants to kids all the time. Granted, some respond well and improve in their school work, but do you know what patients tell me regarding how these drugs make them feel? Emotionless! So now you have kids feeling emotionless and playing these violent video games, how do you think they will turn out as adults? This is only an example, what about all the kids, especially boys being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD? Sometimes boys will be boys, there are few outlets to let boys run and play and be boys, they are restrained chemically. Big Pharm wins again!
