title: Mixed Messages, Mixed Outcomes: Exposure to Direct-to-Consumer Advertising for Statin Drugs is Associated with More Frequent Visits to Fast Food Restaurants and Exercise.
abstract: This study examines whether exposure to direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCAs) for statin drugs is associated with non-pharmaceutical behaviors to prevent cardiovascular disease. We focus on the relationship between statin drug DTCA exposure and the frequency of (a) visits to fast-food restaurants and (b) exercise. We combine data on the televised broadcast availability of statin drug DTCAs in large media markets in the United States with 18 waves of the Simmons National Consumer Survey (NCS; n = 120, 229) from 2001 to 2009. We find that statin drug DTCA exposure is associated, in a dose-response pattern, with modest increases in the frequency of exercise and large increases in the frequency of fast-food-restaurant visits. The relationship between statin DTCA exposure and fast-food-restaurant visits were largely consistent in direction but differed in magnitude between those without a previous diagnosis of high cholesterol and those treating high cholesterol with a statin. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of these results for future research on pharmaceutical DTCA and population health.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Communication , Cornell University.
authors.forename: Jeff
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Niederdeppe
authors.affiliation: b Department of Policy Analysis and Management , Cornell University.
authors.forename: Rosemary J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Avery
authors.affiliation: b Department of Policy Analysis and Management , Cornell University.
authors.forename: Maxwell D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Kellogg
authors.affiliation: c College of Human Ecology , Cornell University.
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mathios
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D004032:Diet; D000067088:Direct-to-Consumer Advertising / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D015444:Exercise; D057140:Fast Foods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000628:therapy; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013690:Television / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D008055:Lipids