Does your doctor know what he’s prescribing? Here’s how you can find out

Is this dirty medical secret an even bigger threat than Obamacare?

It’s one of the most shameful moments in American history.

A healthcare juggernaut that will inevitably cost innocent citizens billions of dollars, invade your privacy in the most critical area, and provide virtually no real benefits — even to the people it was designed to help.

And the simple reason is: no one read the bill. Not one member of Congress says they have read it. And neither has King Obama himself.

Why not? Well, they simply didn’t have the time…

Still they passed it. He signed it. Nobody has a clue what loopholes and weird traps are lying in wait to fleece you of your savings — and your privacy.

And that same exact thing is happening in your doctor’s office almost every single day.

But when your doctor doesn’t have time to read the details, it can threaten more than your wallet and your privacy…it can literally kill you.

Puttin’ on the Ritz

In private, doctors will confess the truth. They don’t have time to carefully read up on every new drug.

So at best, they take the short cut. They read the abstracts.

If you’ve ever seen a study abstract, then you know there’s not much to see. It’s a flash-in-the-pan summary of how the study was set up. You get the basic results and a conclusion that could fit on one of those tiny paper scraps in fortune cookies.

And that’s what most doctors use to figure out if a new drug is right for you.

Many doctors take these abstracts at face value. And if they happen to get published in some prestigious medical journal, your doctor might take the bait and put you on a drug thinking the results are promising.

Yet as we’ve seen many times, lots of ugly details get hidden in the full studies.

It turns out, there are plenty of pressures and back-room deals that encourage researchers to manipulate data. They’re desperate for a blockbuster so they need to make drugs appear groundbreaking. They pull out all the stops and put on the razzle dazzle to describe mediocre results. Then they downplay or even hide harsh side effects.

Probably the most notorious example… An abstract of a 2000 Vioxx study made the risk of death due to heart attack sound minor. But complete stats about the alarming number of heart attacks and deaths were purposely withheld.

Here’s your rule of thumb with any new drug: The fact that it’s new means it’s untested. Yes, there are studies. But the studies are almost always financed by the company that makes the drug. And what actually gets published is up to them. Don’t get caught up in the hype of the NEW.

So when your doctor tells you about some amazing drug, here are three questions that need straight answers…

1. When was the drug approved?

2. What new details about the drug have been revealed since approval?

3. What adverse event reports has the FDA received?

I know it can be uncomfortable to question your doctor…especially for him. So if you want to avoid an awkward situation while you’re in that silly paper gown, ask your pharmacist before you get the prescription filled.

But make sure you get the answers before you start taking anything being hawked as new. Remember, “new” is their tricky way of telling you that you’re part of an ongoing experiment.

Sources:
“Cancer studies often downplay chemo side effects” Reuters, 1/10/13, foxnews.com