The process of social medicalization in Brazil is intense and important for the SUS (Unified Healthcare System) - particularly the PSF- and for Collective Health. The purpose of this article is to reflect on this process from a critical and "diagnostic" perspective. To this end, a free outline of Illich's (1975) ideas on the topic is presented, followed by an interpretation of his thoughts from Fleck's (1986) epistemological point of view. Medicalization culturally transforms populations, reducing their ability to face most of the everyday illnesses and pains autonomously. The consequence is an abusive and counterproductive consumption of biomedical services, generating dependency and alienation. According to Fleck, it is the predictable consequence of the fast and forced socialization of the biomedical style of though, which is centered on control and heteronomous actions and interpretations. This mentality was spread to population groups that are not very modern and that are multicultural and of various ethnicities, this being the case of the vast majority of the Brazilian people.
drug utilization; knowledge; Family Health Program