![]() ![]() They also asked the study subjects at each point how effective they thought Claritin would be for treating allergies. The researchers repeated the histamine challenge halfway through the movie, and again when it was over. One group watched a movie (“Shakespeare in Love”) spliced with Claritin commercials, and one group watched the same movie with ads for its competitor, Zyrtec. They gave each subject a skin test by injecting a small amount of histamine under the skin on the forearm, then recording their response by measuring the size of the welt it raised.Īfter the histamine skin test, each subject took a 10-mg tablet of Claritin. They divided the study subjects into two groups, those with a history of allergies and those without. We get the benefits of advertising for the drug too. “This study actually says maybe we get a third thing. As a clinician we get the placebo effect plus whatever effectiveness of the drug,” he said.īut this research revealed a new dimension. “It’s clear that there is a placebo effect. People who believe they are taking a drug will see their symptoms improve, whether it had any active ingredients or not. Naclerio said that allergists have long benefitted from the placebo effect with allergy medications. The researchers wanted to see if this advertising has any real effect on consumers, besides convincing them one brand is better than the other. The most common way to treat these symptoms is with an antihistamine that lessens that reaction.Īntihistamines have been around for decades, and are now marketed heavily under brand names like Benadryl, Claritin and Zyrtec. This triggers an inflammatory response-sneezing, itching, watery eyes, etc. The body responds to common allergens like pollen, mold or dust mites by releasing a substance called histamine. They found that people who took a common allergy medication responded better after watching a movie interspersed with commercials for that drug instead of ads for one of its competitors. The study crossed academic boundaries at UChicago, conducted by Emir Kaminica, professor of economics at the Booth School of Business, Anup Malani, Lee and Brena Freeman Professor of Law, and Robert Naclerio, MD, who at the time was chief of the Section of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery (he's now at Baylor). ![]() These commercials are designed to convince consumers of the superiority of one brand over another, but in 2013, a unique study from the University of Chicago suggested that the ads themselves could increase the effectiveness of these drugs as well. They’re as unavoidable as the pollen and mold spores that make people so miserable during allergy season. ![]() Beginning each spring and carrying on through the fall, television ads for over-the-counter allergy medications blanket the airwaves. ![]()
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