Hey readers, I hope you are doing fine and am sending a lot of hugs and positivity to all of you. Another blog, another industry, in the "How Big Is" series. So, what's the most important asset that no one can afford to lose in life? It's our health and to maintain it, you need to turn to medicines and pills every once in a while. So, Today we'll be talking about the pharmaceutical industry. So,
What is Pharmaceutical Industry?
Basically, the pharmaceutical industry is a type of industry that covers the development, production, and marketing of drugs needed for medical use that is conducted by both private and public organizations.
The pharmaceutical industry plays an important role in our lives. We need medicines, vitamin tablets. The pharmaceutical industry is one of the oldest industries and it dates back to the Vedic era, where the ayurvedic approach was used, and then later, it's transformed into tablets and liquid form. The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most lucrative, research-oriented, and experimental industries. Most pharmaceutical companies spend a lot of money, they spend approx 20% of their income on research and development into new ways of treating diseases and it’s so complex that lots of areas come under the same roof to develop new ways of making humans live longer. Yes, this is the industry that’s highly regulated to ensure that no abuse is being carried out.
So, without further adieu, let’s dive deep into the 10 facts about the pharmaceutical industry
It all started 200 years ago.
There is no proof that medical prescription medication works long time.
Big Pharma companies get fined a lot.
Antibiotics were discovered 93 years ago.
Pfizer is one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world.
Clinical trials don’t always get approval.
There’s a big pharma conspiracy going around.
Advertising is the key in the industry.
The Pharmaceutical industry is the most profitable.
Engineers and new technology are helping a lot.
It all started 200 years ago:-
As I mentioned before the pharmaceutical industry is one of the oldest industries. From the Vedic era to modern medicines. I was really fascinated to know about it, though I am not a doctor or a chemist. The modern pharmaceutical industry dates back to the 19th century, where the purification of the individual organic compound was perfected in the late 1800s by the German dyes manufacturers and the other rudimentary methods in the area of organic chemical synthesis were also established. Diseases like pneumonia, tuberculosis, and diarrhea were deadly in the US, and it sparked the mortality rate by 10%. In the early years of research, the development of new drugs for treating infectious diseases was the core focus because they were the leading cause of death in many countries.
There is no proof that medical prescription medication works long time:-
Shocking! But it’s true. According to a research report, multiple prescription drugs taken in combination are toxic to the liver, kidneys, and other organs especially if, they are taken daily. Sadly, the FDA doesn’t conduct a test for taking toxic medicines for long-term effects. Long-term use of prescription can also affect the brain and can cause major addiction. According to research, many people in the US are taking these toxic medicines for a long time even though there’s no evidence stating that it’s safe to long-term use, and that’s the reason why many pharmaceutical companies are working on it and trying to find a viable solution to it.
Big Pharma companies get fined a lot:-
Yes, most of the big pharma companies are fined a lot. That’s what this industry is all about, following the rules and regulations and are highly regulated. Despite the regulations, they are still fined for malpractice.
A great example of it is when GlaxoSmithKline had to pay a fine of $3 Billion because of promoting certain prescription drugs like Paxil, Wellbutrin, and Avandia unlawfully as it failed to report certain safety data to the FDA. Antidepressant drugs like Paxil and Wellbutrin were misbranded and healthcare providers were provided various rewards by the company to recommend them to the patients for off-label uses.
Even Pfizer had to pay a fine of $2.3 Billion just like GlaxoSmithKline, for the illegal promotion of their drug, Bextra, where they marketed the drug illegally and paid bribes to healthcare providers so that they could prescribe the drug to their patients.
Antibiotics were discovered 93 years ago:-
So, antibiotics are medications that are used to destroy or slow down the growth of the bacteria. People did not know the infections were caused by bacteria. Various molds and plant extracts were used to treat infections by some of the earliest civilizations like the Egyptians applied molded bread to infected wounds.
In 1928, it was Alexander Fleming who came up with Penicillium, upon returning from a holiday in Suffolk, he noticed that a fungus, Penicillium had contaminated a culture plate of Staphylococcus bacteria that he had accidentally left uncovered. The fungus had created the bacteria-free zones wherever it grew on the plate. Fleming isolated and grew the mold in pure culture. He found that Penicillium proved extremely effective at low concentration level, which prevented Staphylococcus growth even when diluted 8000 times and was less toxic than the disinfectants used at that time and that’s how antibiotics were discovered and he won a Nobel prize for it in the year 1945.
Pfizer is one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world:-
There are big players in every industry. But if you are smart and have deep knowledge about the industry, then you can make tons of money. The biggest pharmaceutical company in the world is Pfizer with a net worth of $51.75 Billion. Pfizer is one of the oldest pharmaceutical companies in the world, founded in 1849.
As of 2021, it’s Johnson & Johnson that’s the largest company with a net worth of $56.10 Billion.
Clinical trials don’t always get approval:-
It’s not an easy job, making an effective drug takes a lot of time. Clinical research refers to the studies or trials done on people most times in hospitals. Pharmaceutical companies are really selective about the information that they release after such research. As I mentioned before in the previous point about GlaxoSmithKline, when they released their drug Paxil, but their data showed that the drug was less effective on children and teens due to which the company was forced to publish all the result reports after the lawsuit was published. This is just one part of it, other companies still don’t publish research reports and still do research without the FDA approval.
There’s a Big Pharma conspiracy that’s going around:-
So, Big Pharma refers to the 15 big pharma companies in the world. There is a lot of conspiracy that’s going around in the pharmaceutical industry. Many reports published state that these giant pharma companies work hand in hand with the governments to keep their population sick so there’s a profit in hand. One of the conspiracy theories was regarding HIV Aids, according to a source, some claim that the virus doesn’t exist and it’s just a big pharma conspiracy to make people buy expensive medicines and hide the fact they don’t know what’s killing people. It’s because of these conspiracy theories that people don’t wanna take any sort of treatments or vaccinations against all sorts of diseases.
Advertising is the key in the industry:-
Medicines play an important role in our lives and we need them once in a while. But the truth is the laws of economics supply here as well and companies fight each other in order to gain market share. This is where advertising plays an important role and that’s what advertisers are good at, grabbing people’s attention. It takes serious money to promote a drug to doctors and consumers, in order to grab more consumers. In the US, most of the Pharma companies spend a lot on marketing and advertising, they spend approx $200-500 Million on advertising in order to generate more sales and revenue. They play all sorts of tactics by hiring a celebrity or giving free samples to doctors to promote their drug to their customers.
The Pharmaceutical industry is the most profitable:-
Yes, the Pharmaceutical industry is one of the largest and the most profitable industries in the world. Americans spend approx $154 Billion on drugs. Companies like Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and GlaxoSmithKline are giants. In the top 10 industries in the world, you’ll find Biotech, Generic, and major pharmaceutical companies.
Engineers and new technology are helping a lot:-
Since, technology is evolving a lot, with the introduction and the rise of AI, and machine learning, it’s also shaping the world and so the industries are also shaping. New technology is shaping the pharmaceutical industry, to help find new ways to cure diseases that are affecting the entire world. So, there’s a hope that diseases like cancer, ebola, Alzheimer’s can be cured in the near future with the help of technology, and even the novel Covid-19. Tech companies like Apple, IBM, Google are investing a huge amount of money in the medical field so that they can enhance the technology and can get insights into the patient’s condition. And this is just the beginning phase.
So, that’s it 10 facts about the Pharmaceutical industry. This is really an interesting industry, as they keep on experimenting and make the world a better place. We can see today, major pharma companies are working really hard since, the pandemic is going on and has halted our lives, vaccines are being made after enormous trials. Let’s hope for the best.
Question,
What are your views on this Industry?
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Oh! You’re still here, of course, you do, and here’s a
BONUS:-
Cannabis can be used as a healing property:-
Shocking! I was amazed when I read about it. A study has shown that medical cannabis/marijuana can be used to heal many diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, ADHD, and other chronic pain and even in improving appetite for HIV Aids, and even sleep and also helps in improving lungs. As it’s becoming legal in some countries like Canada, Some states of the US, and South Africa.
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