week 11, post 1, where are all the drug ads?

When also considering what is missing from the Swedish categories of advertisements, I notice a gap in the drug category. There are little to no ads that I have seen that have anything to do with prescription drugs or even over the counter drugs. I have talked with a couple of locals about this matter, and the idea of seeing an advertisement for a drug seemed odd to them, although quite normal to me. With Sweden being known for its long life expectancy compared to other countries, especially the U.S, the placement of drug ads becomes interesting to see missing. In the States flipping through a magazine can guarantee seeing something of this sort:

With a different healthcare system, the case in America is that drugs have become a business just like any other that need advertising in order to sell products. Many of the ads call on potential customers to ask their doctor for more information, often leading to the sale of the medicines. It is very common to see commercials for depression medication and sleeping aides. The commercials often evoke a questioning of oneself causing the wonder of "can this drug improve my life?", or "can this drug solve my problems?". The presence of the commercials often have one wondering if they are living their life to the fullest, or if they have problems that need to be brought to the surface. The absence of this idea of 'checking oneself' can be attributed to many structural differences in Sweden, the most apparent being health care. The healthcare in Sweden is set up in a way that if everyone was taking every prescription they themselves wanted rather than the doctor prescribed, it would not work well. The system might soon become overused, and might result in raised prescription prices. While Sweden might be trying to limit its services since they provide them at almost no cost to their people, it could also be the fact that Sweden is not an outgoing country. Sweden, on the other side of life longevity, is known for its high suicide rate. This has long been attributed to the weather and the lack of openness in their culture to talk about feelings of depression. With an overall cultural difference of a closed off personality and increased privacy, Swedes don't seem to have as much of a way to cope with sadness and depression as Americans do. Especially considering the darkness that Sweden experiences starting in November and lasting throughout the winter, perhaps if Sweden started to show more ads for medications, the suicide rate would see some change. However, if Americans toned theirs down a bit, it is possible that health care costs would be less of a concern in our country than they are now.