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SALT LAKE CITY — Lung infections, breathing difficulties, allergic reactions and high fever: these are all potential side effects listed in ads for prescription drugs. Sometimes, they seem even worse than the problem they're supposed to fix.
"Symbicort — may increase your risk for lung infections, osteoporosis, and some eye problems," says one television ad.
"Call your doctor if you have high fever to address a potential life threatening condition," says another.
But are all those warnings scaring us away?
Not really says a new study published this week in the journal Psychological Science.
Researchers tested people's habits after watching ads for cigarettes and artificial sweetener — both come with pretty strong warnings. They found the warnings can backfire because of the time between seeing the ad and the decision to buy the product.
That's kinda human nature. We like to forget the negative and push that to the side and think about the positive, what's going to help us.
–Avery Holton
"Two weeks, two months after it airs — those effects kinda deteriorate and go away," said Avery Holton, an expert in health communications at the University of Utah.
Holton says many people could be more apt to go out and buy the risky product because they remember the benefits more than the risks.
"That's kinda human nature," Holton said. "We like to forget the negative and push that to the side and think about the positive, what's going to help us."
The study found that instead of seeing a product as potentially harmful, people saw the scary warnings as a disclosure from honest and caring manufacturers.
"It's at least conveying the perception they are willing to be transparent about their product," Holton said.
Manufacturers have become better at presenting risks so they don't seem to be harmful, Holton says.
"Whether that's showing couples in a bathtub at sunset or presenting information in a soothing manner through a radio program or some sort of print ad," he said.
Holton says trusting an ad that spells out the risks isn't good enough and people need to aggressively research anything they consume, from artificial sweeteners to prescription medications, to really determine if the risks are worth it.
