I thought that I would take a short break from answering your questions and exposing fallacies in the diet and supplement industries to just enjoy some history of the old west. I don't know about you, but I love the old west. But to be truthful, I'm glad that I don't have to live the way they did. Most of the time I think it was a very hard life. Anyway, read and enjoy this story about Snake Oil Salesmen.

I think that most people are aware or have at least heard of snake oil. Snake oil originally came from China, where it is called shéyòu. Oil derived from the fat of snakes, especially a particular specie of water snake found in China, are higher in eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) than other sources. As EPA is thought to have inflammation-reducing properties, snake oil was actually a plausible remedy for swelling and pain in joints, muscles and other tissues. It was used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis, and other similar conditions. Chinese laborers, on railroad gangs involved in building the Transcontinental Railroad, gave snake oil to Europeans with aches and pains from the strenuous work. In fact, Snake oil is still used as a pain reliever in China and is still sold in traditional Chinese pharmacies. Although snake oil was developed in China, patented snake oil remedies actually originated in England where a patent was granted to Richard Stoughton's Elixir in 1712.

In time, snake oil became a generic name for many compounds marketed as miraculous remedies. This probably occurred because snake oil was not as effective as advertised which resulted in it becoming associated with bad products. These other products were made from ingredients that were usually secret, unidentified, or mischaracterized and mostly inert or ineffective. The placebo effect may have accounted for most of the perceived benefit. A placebo effect is a perceived benefit, from a medicine or any other product claimed to have some beneficial effect, when in fact there is no real benefit from using the product.

The "snake oil" peddler became a common character in early Western society. A travelling "doctor" with dubious credentials would come along selling some medicine with boisterous marketing hype often supported by bogus scientific evidence. To enhance sales, an accomplice in the crowd (a "shill") would often "attest" the value of the product in an effort to provoke buying enthusiasm. The people hoping for some easy cure for their ailment would enthusiastically buy it. The "doctor" would prudently leave town before his customers realized that they had been cheated. This practice is also called "grifting" and its practitioners "grifters". The term “snake oil peddling” is used as a derogatory term to describe such practices.

People now more then ever have the misconception that science really has developed these miraculous products. The FDA hasn't helped the problem either. Supplements and other similar concoctions are considered food products and are only under the same regulation as other food items. Therefore, any concoction that you can dream up can be sold as a supplement. Makeup whatever benefits you want it to have and print it on the label. There is enough support from the general belief of the common fallacies that most people will believe your advertisements and the FDA is not going to interfere with you.

So you can see, “Snake oil” remedies are still very prevalent today. Not much has really changed except for the way that the advertisements are brought to the public. How many times have you heard something like (with many variations): “Here it is! A new scientific breakthrough! By taking this pill you can eat anything you want and still lose weight.” There are people portrayed in the advertisement who testify that they have used that product with great success. They are well conditioned physically and portray the perfect picture of health. If you read the fine print, you will find that it also says, “May require some dieting and exercise to achieve these results.” Really?

So when you look at the current situation, not much has changed. Technology makes it easier to reach more people. People continue to testify that the product really works as advertised. You keep buying the products hoping that you can achieve those miraculous results. The results are never there as advertised. If you think that you have achieved the results advertised, don't forget the stipulations that they put on achieving the results such as "may require some dieting and exercise to achieve these results." Did you diet and exercise as you used the product?

Well, okay, sorry. I guess that it is really hard for me to break away from dispelling the lies and fallacies that keep getting promoted. It is just so amazing that after so many years, nothing has really changed. I really do like the old west, horses and guns, and the romanticism of being able to just roam freely across the prairie and through the mountains. Until the next blog.

Snake Oil

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