Sometimes a lot of information is not a good thing.
The litany of side effects recited in TV drug ads are designed to alert you to all of the potential risks, big and small. But it turns out these well-intended laundry lists, which are required by regulators, actually have the opposite effect — consumers pay less attention to the most serious side effects and, consequently, focus on the benefits of the drug, according to a new study.
In short, regulators may have created a paradox if the marketability of the drugs has increased.
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