How Does Drug and Supplement Marketing Affect a Healthy Lifestyle?

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

This research investigates consumer reactions to the marketing of drugs and supplements and the consequences for a healthy lifestyle. A series of experiments provides evidence that drug marketing undermines intentions to engage in health-protective behaviors (i.e., a boomerang effect). The boomerang arises from two psychological mechanisms: (1) drugs reduce risk perceptions and perceived importance of, and motivation to engage in, complementary health-protective behaviors, and (2) drugs are associated with poor health that reduces self-efficacy and perceived ability to engage in complementary health-protective behaviors. A combined intervention accompanying a drug remedy that targets both motivation and ability mitigates the drug boomerang on a healthy lifestyle.