The FDA may move to shorten that grim list of side effects in every drug ad. Advertising execs can’t wait

Warning: Watching TV drug ads may put you to sleep.

That’s no surprise to many of us who’ve heard about the countless ways prescription drugs can harm us. But now, the Food and Drug Administration is considering whether bombarding consumers with every last potential side effect might be overkill. The agency, which approves prescription drugs and oversees how they’re marketed, is proposing a new study to look at whether patients are being “over-warned” to the point that they stop paying attention.

“You don’t even bat an eyelash that this product could kill you, which is kind of an indicator of how ubiquitous it is,” said Holly Fernandez Lynch, a bioethicist at Harvard Law School. Experts said the research might be a sign the FDA could loosen up regulations that require drug companies