Persuasive Essay On Belsomra

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Belsomra (suvorexant) is an FDA-approved, prescription medication intended for people who have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, such as those who are diagnosed with insomnia. In 2015 the company, Merck & Co., created a television ad promoting their medication. In the ad there are animals being portrayed as sleep and wake. Wake, the dog, is constantly waking up Sleep, the cat, throughout the night which causes the owner to wake up as well. This is a representation of what happens when someone is having trouble sleeping. The narrator in the ad describes belsomra as a drug that can “turn down wake messages, by targeting and inhibiting the action of orexin” (i Spot, 2015). Orexin is a wake neurotransmitter in the sleep and wake pathways of the brain. If the orexin transmitter is not turned down like it should be or it is being interrupted, insomnia may occur. The commercial claims belsomra is the “only” sleep drug that works by targeting and inhibiting orexin neurotransmitters (i Spot, 2015). How was it proven that belsomra is the only sleep aid to work this way? …show more content…

H. Yang wrote an article titled Suvorexant: First Global Approval for an R&D Insight report. The basis of the article is about how suvorexant is the first drug in it’s class to be approved for insomnia. Belsomra as advertised, is the company’s trade name for suvorexant, also known as MK4305. It comes in pill form and is recommended to be taken orally. The dosage is 10mg taken once per night, 30 minutes prior to going to bed. Dosage may be increased to 15mg or 20mg if users find the 10mg dose to be tolerant but ineffective. It should not be taken unless the patient is able to receive seven hours of uninterrupted sleep (Yang, 2014, p.

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