The AMA has warned doctors to steer clear of “troubling” advertisements that promote “wrinkles, loose skin and baldness” as medical conditions, or grief as needing treatment.

AMA president Dr Omar Khorshid says any advertising by doctors, including on social media platforms, must not undermine patient choice. 

“The AMA is troubled by medical advertising practices that promote unrealistic body images, particularly where these concerns relate to common features of the human lifecycle,” Dr Khorshid said on Friday when releasing the AMA’s Position Statement on Advertising and Public Endorsement 2020.

“Wrinkles, loose skin, and baldness are part of the natural ageing process, and emotions such as grief and day-to-day worries are not necessarily pathological conditions requiring medical treatment.”