Prescription…Fish Oil?

Stop the presses.

There’s a new drug in town.

It’s called Lovaza, and this one is made with fish oil, well-known for its high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, to be specific.

It promises to lower the levels of triglycerides in user’s blood. Studies have shown that high levels of these fats can be dangerous and lead to significant health problems.

So, in order to cash in on the research that has proven the benefits of consuming whole foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids like salmon, tuna, walnuts, and olive oil, as well as supplementing with high quality natural omega-3 products, Big Pharma has figured out a way to use their chem labs to create a fish oil “supplement” they can patent. Doing this then allows them to go after an established market and make a boatload of money off naive consumers who believe if something is FDA approved, then it must be good for them.

One of the company’s tag lines is, “Learn why dietary supplements you buy at the store are not the same as Lovaza.”

If that isn’t an out and out dig on natural products, I don’t know what is.

Obviously the big drug companies recognize the supplement market is enormous and are trying to hone in on it, discrediting “health food stores” and other places people associate with natural remedies, as if they and the products sold there are inferior to what Big Pharma has to offer.

But they are also piggy-backing on what has been well known in the “natural” arena for a long time: that taking a fish oil supplement can promote positive health benefits, particularly for your heart.

What bothers me about this new marketing campaign put out by GlaxoSmithKline, the makers of Lovaza, is how they are making themselves and their product out to be far superior to anything you could get anywhere else. They also use the “FDA Approved” line to suggest credibility of their product over anything that doesn’t have that federal stamp of approval. (What many people don’t know is that the FDA is required by law to approve any kind of drug because of its potential to kill people.)

Like most prescriptions, Lovaza isn’t cheap. In fact, watch this brief video about Lovaza produced by the unbiased consumer organization, Consumer Reports:

Clearly, Lovaza is very expensive compared to a high quality fish oil supplement you can purchase at your local drugstore or supermarket, not to mention in a dose that is too high for people, even those with heart disease.

I suppose what bothers me most in the end of all this is that a lot of people will show up at their doctors’ offices tomorrow and the next day and the next and ask for this new fish oil pill they saw on TV BECAUSE they saw it on TV. Naturally the doctors will give them a prescription and here we go again with adding more little brown bottles to the ever-growing collection in the medicine cabinet. Rather than getting the education they need on the best approach to their health, too many consumers automatically assume that a drug will solve their problems.

Nevermind that the side effect profile for Lovaza is pretty grim, just like all drug side-effect profiles are:

“Back pain; burping; flu-like symptoms (eg, fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness); taste changes; upset stomach.
Seek medical attention right away if any of these SEVERE side effects occur when using Lovaza:
Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); changes in vision; chest pain; fast, slow, or irregular heartbeat; numbness of an arm or leg; severe stomach pain; signs of infection (eg, fever, chills, or persistent sore throat); sudden shortness of breath; sudden, severe headache, vomiting, dizziness, or fainting.”

Given a choice between something concocted in a chem lab vs. a product developed by a reputable company using only the finest ingredients from real sources (in this case, FISH), I will choose the real deal every time. And for the price? I can treat myself to several delicious dinners of fresh grilled wild salmon for what it would cost me for one month’s supply of prescription fish oil! Not that I would ever consider getting a prescription for fish oil, or any other supplement for that matter.

What do you think of Big Pharma’s move into prescription supplements? Share your comments here and spread the word so we can teach people to think for themselves when it comes to their health!