I know this is a gossip blog, but it is also my blog, and so I can do pretty much whatever the hell I want. I had just finished the story about the NY subway worker who has a rags to riches screenwriting story and you can read about that here.
After reading that story I had a smile on my face, and was genuinely happy for the guy, and then another story caught my eye. Apparently the FDA is investigating the drug Singulair which is made by Merck to treat "stuffy noses, sneezing, and other allergy symptoms as well as asthma."
Why is the FDA investigating? Well it seems when you have a stuff nose and take Singulair, one of the side effects is that you get suicidal thoughts. WTF? Look I get allergies sometimes, but I would much rather just be f**king miserable for a few weeks, rather than take some pill which will only work for a few hours on the allergy, but might leave me dead before it wears off.
How did someone not discover this before the drug was approved? Did they test the drug in a mental hospital and so no one noticed if the suicide rate went up while it was being tested? Someone must have noticed somewhere. After the drug hit the markets, and after Merck became aware they were probably going to get their asses sued on a fairly regular basis, they added this list of side effects to the label: risk of tremors, depression, anxiousness and suicidal behavior.
I can hear the television commercial now. A really kind female voice is talking in the background while a couple are enjoying a hike through the forest. "Although side effects are rare, they may include rashes, red skin, tremors, depression, anxiousness, or a desire to kill yourself. Notify your doctor if any of these occur. Of course should you kill yourself before you can get an appointment with your doctor, then at least you won't be suffering from allergies."
The FDA is also reviewing Accolate and Zyflo, but has not determined if they make you want to kill yourself or not. I thought the idea was that they were supposed to do all this reviewing and testing BEFORE people started taking it.