Friday, August 31, 2007

The Business and The Products - My Experences

First of all, I would like to say that Reliv has good products and I know that many people have been helped by them. But there are some concerns that you need to consider before #1 Taking the Reliv products and #2 before joining the business.

I was a Reliv Master Affiliate for 2+ years and honestly I saw a lot of people who got results from the products but I also saw a lot of people make "claims" of things the products did for them but from the outside I knew were completely a lie. And I have seen Reliv destroy peoples lives.

When I joined Reliv I wanted to "help" people and it really turned me off to see everyone around me get so hung up on making money and the strictly against approach to selling the products cheaper. But this is what I did, I sold the products just above my cost until I was finally kicked out of the company. My upline was happy for a while as I was selling almost 10,000 dollars of products a month.

And then we started doing some research into Reliv and three things came to the surface, #1 Reliv is HIGH in Soy and if you do just a small amount of research on the Internet you will find that SOY is quickly becoming VERY dangerous due to the fact that is now one of the causes for Cancer and especially Breast Cancer in women. #2 Reliv products are very high in Calories and can cause you to gain weight. In a society today where the American public are already over weight, we don't need Reliv to help this happen. Not to mention all of the problems that come from gaining weight. #3 I gave Reliv to a close friend of mine in Europe and they took the product into the doctor during a regular visit. The Doctor HIGHLY suggested they not take the product as he explained that High Dose vitamins are not healthy for the body.

And then, about a year ago Reliv "reformulated" their Classic and NOW products and I have received many complaints from people after this happened and I am sure Reliv has too. Many have stopped feeling the results they once had and one person even told me it causes their daughter to go from getting better to getting worse.

So let me ask you, is Cancer and Gaining weight worth it? 

After I was kicked out of the company, one of my clients switched to a new company. She had been using Reliv for a number of years but this new company is completely natural and she says she has never felt better. She has received wonderful results way more than she got from Reliv and the best part, it's all Fruits and Veggies, no soy in them. If you would like to know more, please check out my friends website. And no, I get nothing from this. :)

I came accross the link below. First I would like to say that I am not pushing any one company. But I found this link interesting as it compared Reliv to the Life Force International company. The Reliv business side isn't as good as many of their distributors claim. At the end of this website, is a form that you can fill out if you would like more info about Life Force but this has nothing to do with me. You will be contacted by someone else.

http://www.homebusinesstruths.com/

And then, before taking Reliv, you need to consider the benefit but also the dangers of taking a Soybean based product.

http://www.soyonlineservice.co.nz/index.htm
http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/index.html 

There are too many other products out there, like Life Force, Vibe, etc that offer a liquid form of nutrition and the body can absorb this a whole lot faster than the powder or pill forms of nutrition. But like I said, many of had wonderful results from Reliv and so you must decide. And maybe it's worth experimenting, try Reliv but also try the other products and see which is truely better for YOU.

Here are a number of sites that I would suggest products from. Try them see for yourself if the results are as good or better than Reliv.

Dr. Organics - www.puredrorganics.com
Lifeforce - http://www.homebusinesstruths.com/
Eniva Vibe - www.EnivaMembers.com/Income

IF you do choose to continue using the Reliv products, I would highly recommend that you purchase them from eBay. This way you can still get the products but without having to deal with the MLM part of Reliv and you get the products at basically the 25 to 35 % discount level, depending on where you live and how much you paid for the products.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

WARNING - Not All Reliv Products are Vegetarian

Many people believe that since Reliv is such a wonderful product and that they work so hard to make "the perfect product", they naturally assume that Reliv is 100% vegetarian. But sadly this is not true. While some of the Reliv products are 100% vegan, others contain many different forms of animal products. Below is a letter that I received directly from Reliv in response to my questions about their products.

"Thank you for your inquiry. I don't have the means to show all of the products together but I will list them for you. I will also pass on your request to our web design group.

Reliv Vegan Products:
  • Reliv Classic
  • Reliv Classic-Basic
  • Reliv Now
  • Innergize!
  • CardioSentials
  • Cellebrate
  • FibRestore
  • ProVantage
Non-Vegan Products:
  • SoySentials: natural & artificial flavors (milk)
  • Reliv Now for Kids (all): omega 3 fatty acids (contains tuna & milk), natural & artificial flavors (milk)
  • Arthaffect: Arthred® (contains bovine)
  • ReversAge: Symbiotropin (contains porcine anterior pituitary peptides), omega 3 fatty acids (sourced from tuna)
  • Slimplicity Meal Replacement: caseinate (milk)
  • Slimplicity Capsules: gelatin (bovine source)
If you have further questions, please let us know.

Best wishes,
Connie Murphy, assistant to
Carl W. Hastings, Ph.D."

Monday, August 27, 2007

FDA Warns Reliv - Concerning Arthaffects

Though this letter from the FDA is almost 9 years old, it is still interesting to have a look at. Reliv was making some claims in their marketing or on their cans of what Reliv Arthaffects would do for a person and these claims have not been approved by the FDA. Even today, many or most Distributors will claim that Reliv will Cure just about any problem that you have but remember, none of these are backed by the FDA. What works for one person does not work for the next. I think ever Reliv Distributor should learn from this as so many have such high faith in this product that they can in some cases cause more harm than good.

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Public Health Service
Food and Drug Administration
St. Louis Branch
12 Sunnen Drive, Suite 122
St. Louis, MO 63143-3800
(314) 645-1167
(314) 645-2969 (FAX)
December 16, 1998


WARNING LETTER
CERTIFIED MAIL
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED

Mr. Robert L. Montgomery
President and CEO
Reliv International, Inc.
136 Chesterfield Industrial Blvd.
Chesterfield, MO 63005

Dear Sir: This letter is in reference to your firm's marketing and distribution of the product, "Arthaffect." Promotional material (labeling) for this product makes therapeutic claims that causes the products to be a drug as defined in Section 201(g) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act). Examples of the claims include the following:

"A breakthrough in the fight against degenerative joint conditions";
"Published clinical studies [include references to] osteoarthritis . . . osteo- and chondropathies . . . ";
"Whether your joints ache from age or an active lifestyle, Reliv Arthaffect does more than treat the symptoms of degenerative joint conditions - it focuses on the source of the problems";
"Traditional joint products simply treat the symptoms of degenerative joint conditions. In contrast, Reliv Arthaffect focuses on the source of these problems . . . ";
"H contains patented Arthred, a protein proven to help fight degenerative joint conditions";
". . . active people who refuse to slow down because of the pain of degenerative jointconditions"; and "Fights degenerative joint conditions"; and "Tired of joint pain."

The product is a "new drug" because there is no evidence that it is generally recognized as safe and effective for its intended use [Section 201 (p) of the Act]. Therefore, it may not be legally marketed in this country without an approved new Drug Application [Section 505(a) of the Act].

It is also misbranded because its labeling fails to bear adequate directions for use for the condition for which they offer it [Section 502(f)(l) of the Actl. Its labeling is false and misleading as it suggests that the product be safe and effective for its intended use when, in fact, this has not been established [Section 502(a) of the Act].

This letter is not intended to be an all-inclusive review of all labeling and products your firm markets. It is your responsibility to ensure that all products marketed by your firm are in compliance with the Act and its implementing regulations.

We request that you take prompt action to correct these violations. Failure to promptly correct these violations may result in enforcement action being initiated by the Food and Drug Administration without further notice. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act provides for the seizure of illegal products and for an injlmction against the manufacturer and/or distributor of illegal products.

Please notify this office in writing within fifteen (15) working days of receipt of this letter as to the specific steps you have taken to correct the stated violations. You should also include an explanation of each step being taken to identify and make corrections to assure that similar violations will not recur. If corrective action cannot be completed within 15 working days, state the reason for the delay and the time within which you will carry out the corrections.

Send your reply to the attention of Andrew H. Paeng, Compliance Officer, 12 Sunnen Drive, Suite 122, St. Louis, MO 63143-3800..

W. Mike Rogers
Director, Kansas City District

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Reliv Damaged My Body

Here is a Review of Reliv that I found while surfing the Internet. It is very hard to find negative information about the Reliv products but once in a while it is possible. The experience that this person had I think is very common. I know of another situation where the local Distributor told the Customer NOT to listen to what the doctors were saying as "The Doctors Don't know Anything". I think many of the Reliv Distributors have so much blind faith in the company and the "success stories" that they are willing to not listen to the doctors. And as you can see, this person below paid dearly for the stupidity of the person selling her Reliv.

"Reliv damaged my body
by health10 ,Apr 20 '06

Pros: It is mixed with liquid and is fairly easy to take.
Cons: This product damaged my nervous system and I am ultra sensitive to certain medications now.

I took Reliv products for 5 months to help alleviate arthritis. I had some burning sensations under my skin, but continued taking it because the distributor said this was normal and would eventually go away, and I was going through detox. They also said I could take Reliv with medications, which I think is dangerous, after my experience. I finally quit taking it because I was having pain in my chest, burning under my skin, and throbbing in my head. It has been almost a year and a half since I quit taking it, and I am still having problems. I also have developed an ultra sensitivity to taking certain medications and vitamins. Taking Reliv was one of the biggest mistakes I have ever made. I think these products should have to go through FDA approval."

Friday, August 24, 2007

Reliv sued by EEOC

It will be interesting to see what the outcome of this lawsuit will be. I think as time goes on, we will find many of these little issues that normally don't appear when a person is looking at Reliv.

Reliv sued by EEOC
St. Louis Business Journal - June 1, 2007

Reliv International Inc. is being sued by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for alleged discrimination in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), according to an EEOC release Thursday.

In the EEOC's suit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Reliv is charged with violating the ADA by failing to accommodate Jason Hood's kidney failure and terminating his employment in the spring of 2004.

Reliv issued a statement in response to the allegations, "Reliv is disappointed that the EEOC has decided to litigate this case. The company has acted properly and lawfully, and is confident that its decisions will be vindicated as this litigation proceeds."

Hood's physician requested that he be given four weeks off work to undergo dialysis and learn to use his home dialysis machine, according to the EEOC release. Reliv granted the requested leave, the EEOC said, but fired Hood upon his return.

Chesterfield, Mo.-based Reliv International Inc. (Nasdaq: RELV) manufactures and distributes nutritional supplements, food products and skin care products.

http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2007/05/28/daily54.html?jst=s_cn_hl

Thursday, August 23, 2007

‎Where Does the Truth Lie

I received the following by email yesterday. I will post my response under the comments for this post. But this person does raise some very good questions about Reliv and every other vitamin that is out there. I have updated my profile and so I hope this is enough for those interested. AND if anyone knows about the additives to Reliv please email me. 

"First, please do not post my name on your blog. Thank you.

Second, I just recently started using Reliv and it has cured my fibroid problem...doctors wanted to remove my uterus. However, I've been a big believer in nutrition and supplements for over 20 years now and am forever searching out new products. What concerns me is that it is getting harder and harder to believe anyone's claims -- yours, theirs...where is the truth?! Why should we believe what you are saying; are you now selling a competing product line? What is your motivation? I'm not trying to be difficult, believe me; I'm just trying to get to the truth. I want to learn about the best products out there. I want to buy from a company with integrity. I'm
searching for scientific studies, etc. What is all this talk about synthetics in Reliv products...what exactly are those ingredients and how do we know? And what exactly is their science behind the
products that makes it better than another? I am suspicious because I have been surprised at the lack of information on their website. If you look at USANA and Shakley, they have some substance to their site, although I'm not sure their products are all they are claimed to be, but at least they seem to be more open. Openness is a problem when I think of Reliv! And what is this about listing things on eBay violates intellectual property rights? I would hazzard a guess that
there is a clause in their contract that prohibits the sale of Reliv products on eBay because it violates the sales practices, or some such thing...just like all the rest of the MLMs. If you have solid,negative, scientific information about Reliv, where is it? And I think you should be a lot more open about who you are, why you have this blog, and if you are in another MLM supplements business. Transparency is the key to everyone's claims.

Thanks, 
Concerned User

PS Where's your profile on your site?!?!"

My Profile is to the Right ---->

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Soy Cancer Warning - by Clair Weaver

I found this following article to be very interesting and I would encourage my readers to read it carefully and more importantly, consider it carefully. One of my posters said that the information that I had was outdated but this article published in Jan of 2007 can't be so outdated. According to this article and many others, Soy can accelerate the growth of Tumors. If you read the Success Stories of Reliv, you will find some that claim Reliv will cure but here is my question, How can it cure everything when it's so high in Soy? If you doctor tells you to avoid Soy, I would suggest avoiding Reliv also!

Soy Cancer Warning
by Clair Weaver
(Source: NEWS.com.au)

January 14, 2007 12:00


CANCER patients are being warned to avoid foods rich in soy because they can accelerate the growth of tumours.

The Cancer Council NSW will issue guidelines today, warning about the dangers of high-soy diets and soy supplements for cancer patients and those people in remission from cancer.

At particular risk are people suffering from hormone-dependent cancers, including breast and prostate cancer - the two most common types of cancer in Australia.

Cancer survivors are also being urged to avoid high doses of soy, as they may be more vulnerable to a relapse.

Research has found high consumption of soy products can also limit the effectiveness of conventional medicines used to treat the disease.

"There is evidence to suggest that women with existing breast cancer or past breast cancer should be cautious in consuming large quantities of soy foods or phyto-oestrogen supplements,'' a position statement from the Cancer Council says.

"Women with current or past breast cancer should be aware of the risks of potential tumour growth when taking soy products.

"The Cancer Council does not support the use of health claims on food labels that suggest soy foods or phyto-oestrogens protect against the development of cancer.''

Health experts are particularly concerned that breast-cancer sufferers who take soy or phyto-oestrogen supplements could feed the disease and reduce the effectiveness of their treatment.

Soy, which is present in soy beans, soy milk, tofu, tempeh and some breads, contains phyto-oestrogens that mimic the actions of hormones in the body.

This means it may interfere with cancer drugs such as Tamoxifen, which works by suppressing the female hormone oestrogen.

Men with prostate cancer are also being warned against high soy consumption, as phyto-oestrogens may imitate the male hormone androgen.

Although the Cancer Council has warned against soy supplements, it believes an occasional intake of soy food is still safe for cancer patients.

Cancer Council nutritionist Kathy Chapman said soy supplements could contain dangerously high doses of phyto-oestrogens.

"If you were a woman with breast cancer and thought, 'I'm going to radically change my diet and have very large portions of soy at every meal', it could be a problem,'' Ms Chapman said.

"For someone who has tofu once or twice a week and drinks a bit of soya milk, it's not so much of a problem.''

Soy has earned a reputation as a natural "superfood'' that cuts the risk of breast or prostate cancer, and is commonly included in women's health supplements.

This claim was based on findings that cancer rates were lower in Asia, where soy consumption is high.

But soy would lower the risk of contracting cancer "only a little'', according to the Cancer Council.

"While they may have a protective effect, there is also some evidence that phyto-oestrogens may stimulate the growth of existing hormone-dependent cancers,'' the council's statement said.

The risk of contracting other non-hormone-dependent cancers, including bowel cancer, would be unaffected by soy intake.

The Cancer Council was prompted to investigate the issue after being inundated with questions about the role of soy in cancer patients' diets.

"We felt we were getting a lot of calls on our hotline about this topic,'' Ms Chapman said.

Breast-cancer survivor Susie Musarra was surprised by the new evidence about soy.

The Sydney mother of two was diagnosed five years ago. She followed a healthy diet, containing plenty of fruit and vegetable juices, during chemotherapy treatment.

"It's really confusing, because you get a lot of conflicting information about what to eat,'' she said. "It's good to have this advice, because it helps you make an informed decision - and the Cancer Council is a reputable source.''

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Where is the Anti-Reliv information?

5 or 6 days ago I was selling some items on eBay. And since it was a "Free Listing Day" I decided to post a bunch of stuff about Reliv. I wanted to give people on eBay a chance to read some of the "facts" about Reliv and the dangers of using products that are high in Soy.

After making a couple of sales, I emailed the information to the people and within 10 minutes, ALL of my auctions were removed from eBay and I had also been suspended until I could fill out some forms and fax them in to eBay.

The reason, "The rights owner, Reliv International, Inc., notified eBay that this listing violates intellectual property rights."

It took me 5 days to get an answer from Reliv about this and I believe the ONLY reason I got an answer at all from them was becasue I finally wrote eBay and told them Reliv was not responding and eBay sent them an email. :)

To make a long story short, there is NO anti-reliv information on the Internet as Reliv stops it. Their "Reliv" name is copyrighted and they put a stop to anyone who says anything bad about them. My question is, Where has our RIGHTS to Free Speech gone????

Intellectual property rights may protect a company but at the same time it also enables them to hide the bad as well. Something needs to change. Send me your posts and I will get them online.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Reliv 2Q Profit Plummets

I wonder if RELIV posted this in there emails to all of their distributors? When I was on the Reliv email list, I got emails all the time about the "Wonderful" things they had accomplished. But I really wonder if they let everyone know that their stocks had fallen or that they were not making as much money. :) Whatever the case, since Reliv changed their formula a year or so ago many have not been feeling the same results and I bet this is why their sales have dropped. Peoples are looking for something better. ALL GOOD things must come to an end and I think Reliv has sumitted and now going down the other side.

Reliv 2Q Profit Plummets
Associated Press 08.01.07, 12:04 PM ET

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. -


Shares of Reliv International Inc. dropped Wednesday after the nutritional supplements maker said its second-quarter profit was cut nearly in half as sales slumped and profit margins were squeezed.

The St. Louis-area company reported net income of $823,311, or 5 cents per share, compared with $1.6 million, or 9 cents per share, last year.

For full article, please visit the forbes website at; http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/08/01/ap3976723.html

Saturday, August 18, 2007

The Soy Controversy - by Vreni Gurd

I found the following article while surfing tonight and I thought that I would pass this on for you to read and consider. More and more they are finding that Soy and Soy products are not as healthy as they once use to be. By doing just a few minutes of research on the Internet you can find PAGES of information about the dangers. And since Reliv is soy based, this is a concern for any and all who use Reliv products. The article below is by Vreni Gurd.

The soy industry has managed to market a waste product as a health food, and gullible consumers are eating their way to health problems.

Soy is often touted as healthy, and it can be if you pick your soy products carefully, but most of the soy that is on the market is actually very hard on our systems. I was completely fooled by the propaganda on soy and bought into this one hook, line and sinker, feeling virtuous switching to soy milk when I found out I was sensitive to poor quality dairy.

Like all grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, soybeans have a phytate layer to stop the beans from sprouting unless there is adequate moisture and warmth. The phytate layer in soybeans is much thicker than in other grains and legumes and cannot be eliminated with soaking, sprouting or long slow cooking. This means that soybeans are very difficult to digest, and the phytic acid reduces assimilation of calcium, magnesium copper, iron and zinc.

Soy interferes with protein digestion, and the soy estrogens are endocrine disruptors, (by binding with estrogen receptors) potentially creating fertility problems and breast or uterine cancer in women, and reducing testosterone in men. These soy phytoestrogens also are anti-thyroid agents, causing sluggish thyroids, possibly thyroid cancer, and weight gain.

Soy increases the body's requirement for B12 and Vitamin D. Soy food processing results in the formation of MSG, which is a well known neurotoxin (nerve poison), and soy contains high levels of aluminum which is known to be toxic to the nervous system and the kidneys. Unless labeled organic, assume that all soybean products are genetically modified.

It is worth noting that in January 2006, the American Heart Association reversed its position recommending the consumption of soy to lower the chance of heart disease, after reviewing 22 recent studies, and noted that the FDA's original recommendation was based on a single study funded by the soy industry. The soy that should be avoided are soy isolate products like:

Soy milk
Soy protein powder/bars
Soy nuts
Soy cheese
Soy burgers
Soy yogurt
Soy ice cream
Soy baby formula


By avoiding packaged food, one can avoid soy disguised on food labels as:

Textured vegetable protein (TVP)
Textured plant protein
Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP)
Vegetable protein concentrate
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)
Lecithin (usually from soy)
Vegetable oil (usually from soy)
Vegetable broth (usually from soy)
Bouillon (usually from soy)
Natural flavour (usually from soy)
Mono-diglyceride(usually from soy)


Soy infant formula is a very bad idea, as the baby gets far too much phytoestrogen for its bodyweight, which messes with the baby's hormones even more than in adults. The estrogenic effects of soy on infants can be irreversible, resulting in delayed or absent sexual maturation in males, and extremely accelerated sexual maturation in females. Soy formula predisposes females to breast cancer and fertility problems later in life.

For those of you that are dairy intolerant and want a milky substitute for your whole-grain cereal, you may be able to tolerate a non-homogenized organic plain yogurt (raw is better if you can get it), or look for a rice milk or almond milk that does not have a vegetable oil listed in the ingredient list, or try organic full-fat coconut milk. Yummy! (No, the fat in coconut milk will not make you fat - lauric acid is a medium-chain fatty-acid that is metabolized immediately by the liver, and is very healthful for the body due to its antibacterial and antiviral factors.)

If you are a soy fan, naturally fermented and/or cultured ORGANIC soy (to avoid GMO) is very healthful, so look for foods like:

Miso – try to find it with unrefined sea salt
Tamari – wheat free
Natto
Tempeh
Extra-firm Tofu with nigari
Organic Edamame, cooked
Organic Soybean sprouts


For more information on the problems with soy, read The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favorite Health Food by Kaayla Daniel.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Reliv is Back - The "Terminators"

I was surfing the Net and came accross this article. I thought it was interesting. This same thing happen to some people that I know but aren't on this list. They were kicked for no reason, and I mean NO REASON accept Reliv was worried they might do something wrong. The person wrote and assured Reliv they weren't but Reliv NEVER responded. RUDE! Anyway, with a company as large as Reliv it's not worth fighting them.

RELIV

CHESTERFIELD MISSOURI

Rod Cook an MLM WatchDog Editorial........posted

Reliv Chesterfield, MO.

Terminated a bunch of people about five years ago. It is my editorial belief that they started the IRS digging into Independent contractor status in this killing off of top distributors several years ago. Reliv had lawsuits going right and left for termination of MLM Distributors for sneezing. Now the IRS thing pops up.

Reliv terminated a good friend of mine Steve Carr that did the "Home Business Radio Show out of Chicago on WLS radio. Shortly there after Reliv in it's Chesterfield location got flooded out, now that ... I thought to myself was Karma working at it's best.....to bad the rest of Missouri had to get flooded to get Reliv for it's evil practices as an MLM Company. Others terminated...

Cindy and Kirby Wright
Brad Murray
Patty Newlin
Paul Devlin

Oh, what terribly competitor of Reliv did Steve Carr join? An MLM grocery club and never told any of his downline. So with a rumor running now that Reliv is one of the companies the IRS is after is almost fun except for the damage Reliv as an MLM will do to the rest of the industry as their distributors get classified as employees and have with holding tax whacked out of their checks.... OUCH TERMINATIONS...

__________________
Rod Cook
http://www.mlmwatchdog.com
http://www.mlmconsultant.com

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Ten Ways to Avoid Being Quacked

Ten Ways to Avoid Being Quacked
Stephen Barrett, M.D.


Promoters of quackery know how to appeal to every aspect of human vulnerability. What sells is not the quality of their products but their ability to influence their audience. Here are ten strategies to avoid being quacked:

1. Remember that quackery seldom looks outlandish.

Its promoters often use scientific terms and quote (or misquote) from scientific references. Some actually have reputable scientific training but have gone astray.

2. Ignore any practitioner who says that most diseases are caused by faulty nutrition or can be remedied by taking supplements.

Although some diseases are related to diet, most are not. Moreover, in most cases where diet actually is a factor in a person's health problem, the solution is not to take vitamins but to alter the diet.

3. Be wary of anecdotes and testimonials.

If someone claims to have been helped by an unorthodox remedy, ask yourself and possibly your doctor whether there might be another explanation. Most single episodes of disease recover with the passage of time, and most chronic ailments have symptom-free periods. Most people who give testimonials about recovery from cancer have undergone effective treatment as well as unorthodox treatment, but give credit to the latter. Some testimonials are complete fabrications.

4. Be wary of pseudomedical jargon.

Instead of offering to treat your disease, some quacks will promise to "detoxify" your body, "balance" its chemistry, release its "nerve energy," or "bring it in harmony with nature," or to correct supposed "weaknesses" of various organs. The use of concepts that are impossible to measure enables success to be claimed even though nothing has actually been accomplished.

5. Don't fall for paranoid accusations.

Unconventional practitioners often claim that the medical profession, drug companies, and the government are conspiring to suppress whatever method they espouse. No evidence to support such a theory has ever been demonstrated. It also flies in the face of logic to believe that large numbers of people would oppose the development of treatment methods that might someday help themselves or their loved ones.

6. Forget about "secret cures."

True scientists share their knowledge as part of the process of scientific development. Quacks may keep their methods secret to prevent others from demonstrating that they don't work. No one who actually discovered a cure would have reason to keep it secret. If a method works—especially for a serious disease—the discoverer would gain enormous fame, fortune and personal satisfaction by sharing the discovery with others.

7. Be wary of herbal remedies.


Herbs are promoted primarily through literature based on hearsay, folklore and tradition. As medical science developed, it became apparent that most herbs did not deserve good reputations, and most that did were replaced by synthetic compounds that are more effective. Many herbs contain hundreds or even thousands of chemicals that have not been completely cataloged. While some may turn out to be useful, others could well prove toxic. With safe and effective treatment available, treatment with herbs rarely makes sense.

8. Be skeptical of any product claimed to be effective against a wide range of unrelated diseases—particularly diseases that are serious.

There is no such thing as a panacea or "cure-all."

9. Ignore appeals to your vanity.

One of quackery's most powerful appeals is the suggestion to "think for yourself" instead of following the collective wisdom of the scientific community. A similar appeal is the idea that although a remedy has not been proven to work for other people, it still might work for you.

10. Don't let desperation cloud your judgment!

If you feel that your doctor isn't doing enough to help you, or if you have been told that your condition is incurable and don't wish to accept this fate without a struggle, don't stray from scientific health care in a desperate attempt to find a solution. Instead, discuss your feelings with your doctor and consider a consultation with a recognized expert.