For the most part the news media has a big influence on the way people think about many topics and the current state of health care in the United States in one area that has many people talking…a lot. Prices of healthcare, especially prescription drugs and many over the counter medications is causing echoes of complaints to be heard in the country's capital and lawmakers are beginning to recognize the need for more affordable healthcare. Natural products for many issues such as colon cleansing have been available long before synthetic drugs and the media is just now seeing how the price of natural products can have an affect on many families. 

The safety of natural products is another big issue being offered by the media as they see many drugs pulled from the market after they have been shown to cause more problems than they were developed to correct. Even something as innocuous as providing sinus relief is begin questioned about its safety to the general population. Despite safeguards in place to protect people from over medicating on over the counter and prescription drugs, their availability and their subsequent potential for abuse is catching the attention of the news media.

Complaints have been leveled at the media for years about the negativity they portray as a method of selling newspapers or to get people to tune in to the broadcast media. For years the media was quick to announce new medications to help with a plethora of medical problems but very slow to report on adverse side effects that they may cause. Even constipation medication, taken as directed, can cause problems for individuals with high blood pressure. They can also dry out sinus cavities and cause other problems associated with dehydration, something that is just now being acknowledged by those in charge of the media. 

Additional complaints about the synthetic drugs from their price, side effects and the potential to be habit forming has begun to cause the media to look more favorably on natural health products. They are beginning to realize that because something is classified as alternative medicine does not mean it is too far from the mainstream public, their subscribers and viewers, to be ignored. The average person is beginning to look for and demanding information on natural health care products for menopause for example, want a safer, more economical means of taking care of their health. 

Some of the most common synthetic drugs on the market include those developed for insomnia and as safe as they may sound have been shown to create dependency in users and are not meant to help with the underlying cause of the sleep problem. Rather, they have been developed to essentially knock people out for several hours at a time by interfering with the brain's function. Not can they be addictive, they can make a person dependent on the drug in order to fall asleep even once the underlying cause has been identified and eliminated. The media is now providing more information on natural health products and most hope it is not too little or too late.