Lifestyle drug
Encyclopedia
Lifestyle drug is an imprecise term commonly applied to medication
s which treat non-life threatening and non-painful conditions such as baldness
, impotence, wrinkles, or acne
, which the speaker perceives as either not medical problems at all or as minor medical conditions relative to others. It is sometimes intended as a pejorative, bearing the implication that the scarce medical research resources allocated to develop such drugs were spent frivolously when they could have been better spent researching cures for more serious medical conditions. Proponents, however, point out that improving the patient's subjective quality of life has always been a primary concern of medicine
, and argue that these drugs are doing just that. It finds broad use in both media and scholarly journals.
and bioethics
around the propriety of developing such drugs, particularly after the commercial debut of Viagra.
The German government's health insurance scheme has denied insurance coverage for some Lebensstildroge ("lifestyle drugs") which they deem spurious.
Critics of pharamaceutical firms claim that pharmaceutical firms actively medicalize
; that is, they invent novel disorder
s and disease
s which were not recognized as such before their "cures" could be profitably marketed, in effect pathologizing what were widely regarded as normal conditions of human existence. The consequences are said to include generally greater worries about health, misallocation of limited medical research resources to comparatively minor conditions while many serious diseases remain uncured, and needless health care expenditure. This medicalization
of some element of human condition has significance, in principle, as a matter for political discourse or dialogue
in civil society
concerning values or morals
.
Social critics also question the propriety of devoting huge research budgets towards creating these drugs when far more dangerous diseases like cancer
and AIDS
remain uncured. It is sometimes claimed that lifestyle drugs amount to little more than medically sanctioned recreational drug use
.
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
s which treat non-life threatening and non-painful conditions such as baldness
Baldness
Baldness implies partial or complete lack of hair and can be understood as part of the wider topic of "hair thinning". The degree and pattern of baldness can vary greatly, but its most common cause is male and female pattern baldness, also known as androgenic alopecia, alopecia androgenetica or...
, impotence, wrinkles, or acne
Acne
Acne is a general term used for acneiform eruptions. It is usually used as a synonym for acne vulgaris, but may also refer to:*Acne aestivalis*Acne conglobata*Acne cosmetica*Acne fulminans*Acne keloidalis nuchae*Acne mechanica...
, which the speaker perceives as either not medical problems at all or as minor medical conditions relative to others. It is sometimes intended as a pejorative, bearing the implication that the scarce medical research resources allocated to develop such drugs were spent frivolously when they could have been better spent researching cures for more serious medical conditions. Proponents, however, point out that improving the patient's subjective quality of life has always been a primary concern of medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, and argue that these drugs are doing just that. It finds broad use in both media and scholarly journals.
Concept and impact on society
There is direct impact of lifestyle drugs on society particularly in developing world. Implications associated with labeling of indications and products sales of these lifestyle drugs may be varied. Drugs can, over time, switch from 'lifestyle' to 'mainstream' use.Bioethics and medical policy debate
Though no precise widely accepted definition or criteria are associated with the term, there is much debate within the fields of pharmacologyPharmacology
Pharmacology is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function...
and bioethics
Bioethics
Bioethics is the study of controversial ethics brought about by advances in biology and medicine. Bioethicists are concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, and philosophy....
around the propriety of developing such drugs, particularly after the commercial debut of Viagra.
The German government's health insurance scheme has denied insurance coverage for some Lebensstildroge ("lifestyle drugs") which they deem spurious.
Critics of pharamaceutical firms claim that pharmaceutical firms actively medicalize
Medicalization
Medicalization is the process by which human conditions and problems come to be defined and treated as medical conditions and problems, and thus come under the authority of doctors and other health professionals to study, diagnose, prevent or treat...
; that is, they invent novel disorder
Disorder
Disorder may refer to :* Chaos, unpredictability and in the metaphysical sense, it is the opposite of law and order* Civil disorder, one or more forms of disturbance caused by a group of people...
s and disease
Disease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
s which were not recognized as such before their "cures" could be profitably marketed, in effect pathologizing what were widely regarded as normal conditions of human existence. The consequences are said to include generally greater worries about health, misallocation of limited medical research resources to comparatively minor conditions while many serious diseases remain uncured, and needless health care expenditure. This medicalization
Medicalization
Medicalization is the process by which human conditions and problems come to be defined and treated as medical conditions and problems, and thus come under the authority of doctors and other health professionals to study, diagnose, prevent or treat...
of some element of human condition has significance, in principle, as a matter for political discourse or dialogue
Dialogue
Dialogue is a literary and theatrical form consisting of a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people....
in civil society
Civil society
Civil society is composed of the totality of many voluntary social relationships, civic and social organizations, and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society, as distinct from the force-backed structures of a state , the commercial institutions of the market, and private criminal...
concerning values or morals
Morality
Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...
.
Social critics also question the propriety of devoting huge research budgets towards creating these drugs when far more dangerous diseases like cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
and AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
remain uncured. It is sometimes claimed that lifestyle drugs amount to little more than medically sanctioned recreational drug use
Recreational drug use
Recreational drug use is the use of a drug, usually psychoactive, with the intention of creating or enhancing recreational experience. Such use is controversial, however, often being considered to be also drug abuse, and it is often illegal...
.
External links
- Are Pharmas Addicted to Lifestyle Drugs? Business Week, June 15, 2007
- Lifestyle drugs: pharmacology and the social agenda. Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2004 Apr;25(4):182-5.
- Lifestyle drugs: issues for debate. J. Lexchin, Canadian Medical AssociationCanadian Medical AssociationThe Canadian Medical Association , with more than 70,000 members, is the largest association of doctors in Canada and works to represent their interests nationally. It formed in 1867, three months after Confederation...
Journal, 2001 - Lifestyle medicines. D Gilbert, T Walley, B New. British Medical Journal, 2000.
- Demand, appropriateness and prescribing of ‘lifestyle drugs’: a consultation survey in general practice. M Ashworth, S Clement, M Wright. Family Practice, 2002 - Oxford Univ Press.
- Lifestyle Drugs: Determining Their Value and Who Should Pay. D Mitrany - Pharmacoeconomics, 19(5) Parts 1 and 2:441-448, 2001.