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Editorial
Protecting consumers: a rich legacy
  1. David Phizackerley
  1. DTB, BMJ Journals, London, UK
  1. Correspondence to David Phizackerley, DTB, BMJ Journals, London, UK; dphizackerley{at}bmj.com

https://doi.org/10.1136/dtb.2024.000012

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    The history of drug bulletins is closely linked with the consumer movement of the late 1950s and early 1960s. The first independent drug bulletin, The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics, was established in the USA in 1959 by Arthur Kallet and Dr Harold Aaron who were leading figures in the Consumers Union, a non-profit organisation set up to provide information on the safety and performance of products and services.1 The Medical Letter was introduced to help doctors evaluate the value of newly launched medicines. It recognised that pharmaceutical companies often exaggerate the benefits of medicines and understate their adverse effects.2 It continues to provide information that is free from the influence of the pharmaceutical industry to help healthcare professionals make the best decisions on the choice of medicines for their …

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    Footnotes

    • Editor's note Sid Wolfe died on 1 January 2024. All of us at DTB send our deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.

    • Competing interests None declared. Refer to the online supplementary files to view the ICMJE form(s).

    • Provenance and peer review Commissioned; internally peer reviewed.