Die Krankheitserfinder
ISBN 978-3596158768 | € 8,90
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By Jörg Blech
Wie wir zu Patienten gemacht werden
Nevertheless, companies which manufacture hormone products propagate the idea that the ‘andropause’ is a serious and widespread illness with symptoms such as mood swings, sleep disturbances and a drop in performance, conditions which can be alleviated with testosterone gels in packs with enough doses to cover a month at 65 euros a packet. The author isn’t content to list fairly impressive examples of ‘new’ diseases.
Above all he describes the cunning marketing strategies which the health industry uses to reach its customers – doctors and their patients. For this, supposedly independent opinion research institutes are signed up, pricey PR and advertising agencies are hired and professors at respected universities are taken on as opinion-formers. According to Blech, up to 80 per cent of all articles and contributions on medical topics that appear in the media can be traced back to carefully planned public relations work.