One Sick Mother

Fat and Happy?

I have a childhood memory of someone -probably an aunt, telling people "I'm fat, but I'm happy".  It is an expression that stuck with me, because it seems so contrary to all of the perceptions and indeed, most of the published data on obesity.

But my aunt's words have been resonating in my brain a lot recently, because:

1. I have gained weight. 
2. I have been feeling better; having fewer seizures and other neuro symptoms.  Therefore, I have been "happier". 

Now, the above two facts may not be related. They could be completely coincidental.  However, I don't think they are. I have written numerous times that I KNOW my fits are related to food and eating. I was wondering if maybe when my body is in "fat storing" mode, rather than "fat burning" mode; if there is something; -some chemical reaction, which does or does not occur that might trigger a seizure event?

It is an interesting question.

Unfortunately, I am not sure how to answer it:  How does one test for that stuff? To whom would I turn?  I am stuck in the old space, where I will ask an endocrinologist, only to be told to see  neurologist, and if I ask the neurologist, he will tell me to see an endocrinologist.

And there is the other dilemma.  Unlike my aunt, who may or may not have been lying: I am NOT happy to be fat. I am the heaviest I have been since pregnant with my second child, and I hate it.  But the fear is there: if I go back to low carb: -the only way I can successfully reduce and maintain my weight: will the fits return in earnest? 

Actually, scratch that. I know they WILL return. There is not  shadow of doubt in my mind. It will just be a question of when will they return?  And then what?

Dilemmas, dilemmas. 

*sigh*

They never end.

Towards Natural Health: Scam

Do you know where the expression "Let the cat out of the bag" came from? 

Well, it came from the practice in Old England of selling piglets in a bag (i.e. "a pig in a poke") at the market or fair. Sometimes, people would buy a piglet only to find when they got home that the wriggling animal inside the bag was actually a worthless cat. So if you were wise, you would open the bag before you hand over any money and  "let the cat out of the bag". That is, you would reveal the scam.

Many pig sellers would leave the pig's tail sticking out of the bag, so you would know it was a piglet and not a cat. However, in a less well-known variation on the old scam, some unscrupulous bastards would cut off the piglets' tails and tie them onto bags, which each contained a cat.

So there was a 'level II' on the pig scam, if you like.

I see Towards Natural Health as a Level II internet scam.  They went through all the trouble to cut the tails off the poor piggies. But it is still a freaking scam; albeit a much prettier one than some the previous scams uncovered here on OSM.  And  keeping in a porcine vein, the expression "putting lipstick on a pig" very much comes to mind here.

Here is an example of one of their sites:

 

 

Wait a sec: To get the full impact you have to load it. Click here and come right back

It's really gorgeous lipstick,  isn't it?  The zooming graphics, the spinning-around globe thingy, the leaves, the starry things, the slick "shick" sound when you roll over a menu item, the persuasive language (although I am never sure what might "suite" me best.  A bathroom installed on my ass, perhaps...?), all the links that they post... 

But look at those links again. Notice they are all general. There are never specific links to the actual condition for which you seek relief. The links are the pig's tail.

Don't be fooled: It's a scam.  They try to cover their asses  by saying things like "This particular website is aimed at helping Motor Neuron Disease patients..."  I guess if you happen to come across the exact same site for ...say Grave's Disease, or one of the 62 or so other sites that I have found (so far), they think their asses are covered.  

Now, unlike SPAH, or Herbal Product Reviews, which are identical scams to this one; Towards Natural Health even has a main site, that goes on about their humanitarian mission to save the world or some such hogwash.

But it is all bullshit. A total and complete scam.  A con. A fraud. Please don't waste your time and money on these guys or on any of the products that they recommend.

Here's how I know they are a fraud:

First off,  all of the products that they recommend are either by Solutions by Nature, Gordon's  Herbal Research Center or Healing Plants, Ltd.  ALL of which have been outed here on OSM as scams.

Often, Towards Natural Health (TNH) will recommend the Solutions by Nature Product.  Hmmm.  I wonder why? 

Well, Here is TNH's address, taken from their main site. It is also the address to which all their  domains are registered (the ones I checked, anyway). PO Box 2175, Paleagade 7, DK-1231, KBH K, Denmark

Here is Solutions by Nature's Address:

 

PO Box 2175, Paleagade 7, DK-1231, KBH K, Denmark

I included both screen grabs so you can see for yourself that they are exactly the same, with no sleight of hand by this Sick Mother. 

 

Towards Natural solutions does list a different address on some of their sites.

Does that address: 115 Abercorn St, M0013, Paisley, PA3 4AT, Scotland; look familiar to you?  

It should.

It is the exact same one as is listed on the domain registration for Herbal  Product Reviews,  which OSM has previously outed as a scam.

 Don't listen to a word that tortoise says.

He is a lying wee bastard. 

And he wants to trample your ice cream, apparently.

Now some of you; -the more trusting among you- may be thinking "It can't possibly be a scam! Why would people go through all this trouble for a scam? "

For the same reason that people would mutilate baby pigs. Because it might make them money. These guys OWN all of these fake herbal sites. There are hundreds of them because they are carpet-bombing the "sick people" market with fake solutions in the hope that some of us will be sick or desperate enough to fall for the ploy. They  are professional con artists. Scamming people it is what they do, and -judging from the number of e-mails I get from people who were scammed or who narrowly escaped because of this site; -they are pretty good at it.

And maybe there is another reason:

Maybe they like it.

Maybe they have such disdain for people with illness and disabilities, that they get some kind of kick out of messing with our heads and our wallets.

And that is really sick.  

 

Help though creating awareness?  Yes. It's what I plan to do. Thanks for the tagline.  It works far better when applied to One Sick Mother than when applied to Towards Natural Health.

Here is the list of TNH scam sites that I have found (updated Sept 6th 2009):

Abdominal Adhesions	http://www.adhesionshelp.org
Achlasia	http://www.achalasiahelp.org
Actinic Keratosis	http://www.actinickeratosishelp.org
Alopecia	http://www.alopeciahelp.org
Atrial Fibrillatin	http://www.fibrillationhelp.org
Bell's palsy	http://www.palsyhelp.org
Benign essential tremor	http://www.tremorhelp.org
Blepharitis	http://www.blepharitishelp.org
Bronchiectasis	http://www.bronchiectasishelp.org
Bullous pemphigoid	http://www.pemphigoidhelp.org
Burning mouth syndrome	http://www.bmshelp.org
Cellulitis	http://www.cellulitishelp.org
Costochrondritis	http://www.costochondritishelp.org
Delayed Ejaculation	http://www.delayedejaculationhelp.org
Emphysema	http://www.emphysemahelp.org
Epididymitis	http://www.epididymitishelp.org
Eye Bags	http://www.eyebagshelp.org
Flatulence	http://www.flatulence-help.org
Folliculitis	http://www.folliculitishelp.org
Ganglion cyst	http://www.ganglionhelp.org
Gastroparesis	http://www.gastroparesishelp.org
Granuloma annulare	http://www.garanulomahelp.org
Grave's disease	http://www.graveshelp.org
Grover's Disease	http://www.grovershelp.org
Guillain-Barre Syndrome	http://www.gbshelp.org
Hand tremors	http://www.handtremorshelp.org
Hernias	http://www.herniashelp.org
Hidradenitis Suppurativa	http://www.hidradenitishelp.org
Hydrocele	http://www.hydrocelehelp.org
Hyperhidrosis	http://www.hyperhidrosishelp.org
Ichthyosis	http://www.ichthyosishelp.org
Inclusion body myositis (IBM)	http://www.myositishelp.org
Keloids	http://www.keloidshelp.org
Keratosis  Pilaris	http://www.keratosishelp.org
Lichen Planus	http://www.lichenplanushelp.org
Lipoma	http://www.lipomahelp.org
Melasma	http://www.melasmahelp.org
Motor Neuron Disease	http://www.mndhelp.org
Myasthenia Gravis	http://www.myastheniahelp.org
Myelitis	http://www.myelitishelp.org
Narcolepsy	http://www.narcolepsyhelp.org
Osteomyelitis	http://www.osteomyelitishelp.org
Pemphigus	http://www.pemphigushelp.org
Peripheral Neuropathy	http://www.neuropathy-help.org
Peyronie's Disease	http://www.peyronieshelp.org
Polycystic Kidney Disease	http://www.pkdhelp.org
Polycythemia Vera	http://www.polycythemiahelp.org
Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR)	http://www.polymyalgiahelp.org
Porphyria (All 6 kinds?)	http://www.porphyriahelp.org
Post-Polio Syndrome	http://www.postpoliohelp.org
Premature Gray Hair	http://www.grayhairhelp.org
Prickly heat	http://www.pricklyheathelp.org
Rectal prolapse	http://www.rectalprolapsehelp.org
Retinal Vein Occlusion	http://www.rvohelp.org
Retinitis Pigmentosa	http://www.retinitispigmentosahelp.org
Scleroderma	http://www.sclerodermahelp.org
Sebaceous Cyst	http://www.cysthelp.org
Seborrheic Keratosis	http://www.seborrheickeratosishelp.org
Sjogrens Syndrome	http://www.sjorgenshelp.org
Tinea Versicolor	http://www.tineahelp.org
Trigenimenal Neuralgia	http://www.trigeminalneuralgiahelp.org
Urethritis	http://www.urethritishelp.org
Uveitis	http://www.uveitishelp.org
Vocal Cord Nodules	http://www.vcnhelp.org
Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia	http://www.wmghelp.org

 

NOTE: While compiling this list, I realized that there are many More Solutions By Nature sites than I had  found previously. I will update that page when I get a chance. Really, there is too much out here for a single person to track  (I bet that is a large part of the plan)

The Secret Evils of a Healthy Diet.

(I'm probably going to get blasted for this one, but I am writing it anyway.)

 No-one wants to hear that a Healthy Diet has Evils. Actually, it was hard to find a clear definition of what constitutes a Healthy Diet, let alone what constitutes Good and Evil therein. But I found a definition and I have found two Evils, which can work together, and -with a bit of assistance from your well-intended and unsuspecting primary physician, can cause a pretty serious problem over time.

WTF are you talking about, OSM? I hear you ask.

I'm talking about B12 deficiency.

Don't be daft, OSM, (I hear you say) there is plenty of B12 in a healthy, balanced diet.

Is there? Show me. OK. scratch that. I'll show you that there might not be sufficient B12 in a healthy diet.

...what exactly constitutes a healthy, balanced diet, anyway?  I tried to find a definition or example online, and could find very little. I did find this:

 

Clinical nutrition definition: Any diet based on sound nutritional principles; the HD philosophy is often coupled with the  belief that organic and/or unprocessed foods–ie, produced without pesticides and chemical preservatives, are superior to adulterated foods

Healthy diets, features of

• High consumption of fruits & vegetables

• Low consumption of red meat & fatty foods

• Raw foods & whole grains are preferred to processed or refined foods

• Protein primarily from fish, dairy products, nuts

• Consumption of salt, pepper, sugar, coffee & other caffeinated beverages, and alcohol, is discouraged

 

OK that sound fair enough, it echoes what most of me doctors have told me: Lots of vegetables and whole grains, low on red meats, fats and chemicals.

Here is a list of some B12 sfood sources from the National Institute of Health (NIH). I figure they should know, right?

Table 1: Selected food sources of vitamin B₁₂

Food	Micrograms (μg) per serving	Percent DV*
Mollusks, clam, mixed species, cooked, 3 ounces	84.1	1400
Liver, beef, braised, 1 slice	47.9	780
Fortified breakfast cereals, (100%) fortified), ¾ cup	6.0	100
Trout, rainbow, wild, cooked, 3 ounces	5.4	90
Salmon, sockeye, cooked, 3 ounces	4.9	80
Trout, rainbow, farmed, cooked, 3 ounces	4.2	50
Beef, top sirloin, lean, choice, broiled, 3 ounces	2.4	40
Fast Food, Cheeseburger, regular, double patty & bun, 1 sandwich	1.9	30
Fast Food, Taco, 1 large	1.6	25
Fortified breakfast cereals (25% fortified), ¾ cup	1.5	25
Yogurt, plain, skim, with 13 grams protein per cup, 1 cup	1.4	25
Haddock, cooked, 3 ounces	1.2	20
Clams, breaded & fried, ¾ cup	1.1	20
Tuna, white, canned in water, drained solids, 3 ounces	1.0	15
Milk, 1 cup	0.9	15
Pork, cured, ham, lean only, canned, roasted, 3 ounces	0.6	10
Egg, whole, hard boiled, 1	0.6	10
American pasteurized cheese food, 1 ounces	0.3	6
Chicken, breast, meat only, roasted, ½ breast	0.3	6

Have a serious look at that list. Now take out the breakfast cereal, because I am pretty sure that's a red herring and then honestly add up how much B12 you consume in a day. Notice that a serving of chicken breast: that vaunted staple of The Healthy Diet, contains only 6% of the Daily Value of B12. A cup of milk (8oz) only 10% and a cup of yogurt, which is two of those little 4oz carton thingys BTW, contains 25% of the DV. 

So -breakfast cereal aside (because I am going to come to that in a minute), were I to try and to get adequate B12 from food, according to this chart from the NIH,  I would need to eat all this:

Food	Percentage DV
2 eggs	20%
A pint of milk (2 8oz cups)	30%
3oz (one little can) of tuna	15%
Two half chicken breasts, roasted	12%
1 cup plain skim yogurt (which I hate)	25%
Total	102%

This brings me to 102% of the daily value. OK fine. Better to be slightly over than under. And remember, I would have to eat all this  in ADDITION to my veggies and wholegrains, which contain virtually no B12.

That's a lot of food. I don't eat three servings of protein AND two eggs AND all that milk and yogurt in one day! I don't know who does. And in order to get adequate B12 from food, I would need to eat like that every single day. Actually more for me. Because I am recovering from a B12 deficiency, I need more B12 than the average Joe.

I can raise my B12 intake by eating Unhealthy food; steak, a taco or a burger all have much higher B12 than the healthy food. But then me Healthy Diet is blown.

...and now we understand the title of this piece.

Yes,  there are better sources of B12 on the list and you may say that I deliberately ignored them. But I can't tell you the last time I served my children wild rainbow trout for dinner, or indeed when I was a Mean Mom and had the audacity to serve farmed rainbow trout for dinner on a school night. Oh wait. I suddenly remembered when:

It was Never.  On both counts. 

We do eat tuna, which is a pretty low source of B12,  but not too much salmon, which is a much better source.  And both kids would probably run a mile if presented with a mollusk (although Grace will eat scallops) or a piece of liver.

So that leaves "unhealthy" food.

Now, I know most of you have probably looked at this list, zeroed in on the 'fortified breakfast cereal', then relaxed, with the thought  I eat me Special K every day. I'm fine.

Are you?

Let's explore that for a minute.

I was quite amazed, when researching this subject to find differing opinions on the recommended daily amount of B12 a healthy adult should intake. Here is an excerpt from the NIH page where I got that daily value grid.

The DV for vitamin B₁₂ is 6.0 micrograms (μg).

This is from the next paragraph, on the exact same page:

Table 2: Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) for vitamin B₁₂ for children and adults [7]

Age (years)	Males and Females (μg/day)	Pregnancy (μg/day)	Lactation (μg/day)
1-3	0.9	N/A	N/A
4-8	1.2	N/A	N/A
9-13	1.8	N/A	N/A
14-18	2.4	2.6	2.8
19 and older	2.4	2.6	2.8

 

So which is it, NIH?  Is it 6 micrograms or 2.4 micrograms?   Because that is a big difference! The 6 mcg number comes from the FDA, BTW.  The 2.4 mcg number comes from the Institute of Medicine. Personally, I prefer the FDA number. I'm going with that one for me and my kids. But here's the problem I have now:  Which number was used in the food values table above?  The FDA number or  the IOM one?  As 0.6mcg=10% of DV on that table, it must be the FDA number.  OK fine.

Then I  looked at me box of special K:

	Cereal only	Cereal with ½ cup vit A&D fat-free milk
B12	100%	110%
Folic Acid	100%	100%

 

These are only percentages. There no values in micrograms. So I don't know if this figure is 100% of the FDA-recommended  6 mcg or of the IOM-recommended 2.4mcg. There is a big difference between the two, right?  Reading all the small print of the box I see "The Institute of Medicine suggests...." So I figure the numbers are IOM numbers. Therefore, the cereal does NOT provide 100% of my FDA recommended daily value.  And also, that first NIH table, with the food values:

Fortified breakfast cereals, (100%) fortified), ¾ cup

6.0

100

 

...is wrong! That's the FDA number, but Kellogg's are using the IOM one. Therefore, that line should read 2.4mcg and 40%.  For special K, at least.

I had a quick look online at the B12 value for Cheerios and again, no hard numbers, just percentages. This time the precentage was 25% without milk and 35% with milk. This time there was neither reference to the FDA or the IOM that I could see, so I have no idea which guideline they are using. For me  the point is moot because we don't really eat fortified breakfast cereal in this house. The Special K box that I used as an example here had been sitting there for ages! But if anyone out there is using fortified cereal as a means to keep their B12 levels propped up, just be sure you understand what those numbers actually represent.

Regardless of whether the recommended amount is 6.0 or 2.4, I figure that many of us who are trying to eat a healthy diet are not getting our full quota of B12 every day, (while the people scarfing down steak, burgers and tacos are doing much better on the B12 front!).   But that's OK, right?  If any of us are B12 deficient, the doctor will catch it in the annual physical  (because we all go for our annual physical right after our birthday, right)?  That's our safety net.  The annual physical.

Maybe. Maybe not.

The Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) test in the standard CBC is the method most doctors use to measure your B12 levels. It is an indirect measure:  The science behind it is relatively simple: If B12 levels are too low, the red blood cells (RBCs)  start coming out wonky. Instead of being a nice, neat doughnut shape,   like in this picture on the left, they are bigger and uneven with lumpy bits (that's a medical term!), like the picture on the right.  Personally I don't see too much of a difference, but that's probably why I don't work in a lab...

There are a few problems I see with this MCV approach for detecting dietary B12 deficiency:

1 Folic Acid (will explain in a tick).

2. The human liver can store up to four  years worth of B12, so by the time your red blood cells are coming out wrong, your diet will have been deficient for years.

3. Making red blood cell is not B12's only job. B12 also makes myelin, the stuff your nerve cells need in order to transmit signal properly:   Multiple Sclerosis is  disease in which myelin is effected;  so yeah. We need it. A lot. And by the time your blood cells start showing problems, the myelin could have been in trouble for a long time.

4. There is a perfectly good test  available that will directly measure blood serum levels of B12.

 

Sorry, wrong Superhero.

In 1998 the FDA required that certain manufacturers of grain staples like bread and cereal should  add Folic Acid to their product.  Folic Acid (B9)  is like a Vitamin Superhero.  It does lots of things in the body. It is most famous for preventing spina bifita  in babies if taken by women prior to conception and during pregnancy.  In fact, Folic Acid is such a superhero, that if your B12 levels are low, it will step in and help those little blood cells to stay healthy and doughnutty.

However, sending Folic Acid to do B12's job is problematic. Because if Folic Acid is a superhero,  it is like the Batman of Vitamins. Well meaning, with lots of tricks up it's sleeve,  but ultimately human. Batman can't fly. He can jump, glide and absail. He fakes it pretty well, but it isn't real flying.

B12 is more Like the Superman of vitamins. He doesn't need tricks or gadgets. He can fly.

B12's primary Superman trick is that it makes myelin.  Folic Acid just can't do that.  So if your B12 is low or missing, and your Folic Acid is high -and it often is  for those of us who like to eat healthy, because we pile on those leafy green vegetables-  Folic Acid will do it's very best to take over B12's job where it can: In the blood cell department.  Unfortunately, your myelin is on its own. Because Folic Acid can't fly.

So remember that blood test, the MCV that the doc will use to indirectly check your B12 levels?  It is now  actually useless for that purpose, and could even be dangerous, because Folic Acid is taking up the slack with the blood cells, but not with myelin.

That is the second secret evil of a healthy diet: Too much folic acid may mask B12 deficiency.

You need a serum B12 test to really know your B12 levels. Don't bother  faffing  around with MCVs for that purpose.  I'm serious.

What does B12 deficiency feel like?

Now all this -especially the folic-acid-masks-B12-deficiency thing this isn't scientifically proven. Yet. They are starting to find some stuff; see this,  this and this. It is relatively early days yet.  Most people can store about 4 year's supply of B12, so it will take a long time for a dietary deficiency to become apparent.  And B12 deficiency is sneaky and unobvious. For me, it started as fatigue and these hideous mouth ulcers that I used to intermittently get all along one side of my mouth and throat. 

I didn't notice that I was losing feeling in my hands until I burned my hand  and didn't feel it. -I didn't flinch at all, but I SAW my hand was burning and pulled it off the grill (ended up with a lovely blister about an inch across).  If that accident hadn't happened, I don't know when I would have realized there was a problem. Other people who have had B12 deficiency will say the same thing: That  it snuck up so slowly and they didn't realize there was a big problem until it was well advanced.

Because most people do what I did when I first started to feel tired. I blamed myself. I figured. I am unhealthy. I should eat better: More fruits and vegetables, less fast food and less red meat...

See the vicious cycle?

This is why we should go to the doctor, people.

... and ask for the correct test.

Herbal Product Reviews: Scam

Much as I hate doing all the research and the drudgework that is involved in researching and documenting all the scam sites that I have been outing recently, I find it hard NOT to do it. I take a break for a day or to, decide to write about me  (Hello?  The blog is not called One Scam Outer) and then I start to wonder what other scams are out there that I have missed?  How many other people, just looking for relief for themselves or their loved ones are being tricked out of their money, which could doubtless go to better uses?  And these thoughts niggle at me. Unrelentingly. So last night, I sat myself down and decided to go searching for more scams. 

I decided to search for remedies for Peyronie's Disease. Now, I had no idea what Peyronie's disease entails. I just know that it seems to be covered on all of the scam sites and -unlike ...say, "Myasthenia Gravis"- I can spell it consistently without having to look it up.

Imagine my surprise while researching, I was suddenly presented with a picture of three erect penises, all in a row.  You don't usually get that when researching scams. Way-hey! thought I: Porn!  this thought was instantly followed by Shit!  Are the blinds down?  ...because my large-screen monitor directly faces a downstairs window (I don't want the neighbours to think that I surf porn. I mean, even if I do, I don't want them to think that I do. ...it's a suburban thing).  Then I noticed that it wasn't porn, but a medical site showing some pictures of a Peyronie's sufferer;  Before, During and After treatment. And the penny dropped. Apparently Peyronie's effects the penis.

Who knew?  Apart from an actual sufferer, that is.

...and I have to throw in a confession here:  I must say that I was somewhat intrigued by the Before picture of the bent and twisted willy. Because I couldn't help but wonder if that one might reach places that other willies might miss, you know?  And before you other women say "Ewe!!":  Admit it:  Most of you thought the same thing. I am just the one who will actually put it in writing. 

And then publish it on the Internet...

Then I read a bit more and I realized that Peyronie's can be painful for the man, so nix that idea. ...unless he was Very Naughty (evil laugh).

Anyhoo: back to the point (quick! before I lose me PG13 rating!): There was I, surfing porn the net, searching for scams, when I found this page

This site: with no person or company name, no phone number, no qualifications or references, except for a little story, told in the first person singular about being a ex-sufferer, having been a sufferer for years, and  doing all the research, gone through all the message-boards and quacks and now presenting "objectively" these four products.

If you read the blurb on each of the products (and those of you who regularly read OSM may instantly recognize just from the names that ALL the products named are scams), the language changes to the first person plural:  "I" and "my" suddenly becomes "we" and "our".

Hmmm.

And then there is the cute little tortoise (WTF does a tortoise have to do with Peyronie's ?  ...I mean,  positively speaking?), promising to show you the way through this "dessert".  All's I can say to that guy is keep your reptilian little paws off my key lime pie!

Having found that tortoise,  I figured there were probably more where he came from.

I was right.  All with the identical back-story, all with the same text; -except for the disease /product names and most pushing the "ical" first, then "ton" then "fax" and lastly either the "ex" or "tab" with a minor disclaimer pinned on the latter.  I haven't seen the "tin" products mentioned, but I think that is because they have been outed too many times as fraudulent.

Here is the list of dodgy "Product Peview" sites.

 

Condition	Site
Abdominal Adhesions	abdominaladhesionsproducts.com
Achalasia	achalasiaproducts.com
Actinic Keratosis	actinickeratosisproducts.com
Alopecia	alopecia-products.com
Atrial Fibrillation	atrialfibrillationproducts.com
Bell's Palsy	bellspalsyproducts.com
Bronchiectasis	bronchiectasisproducts.com
Cellulitis	cellulitisproducts.com
Delayed Ejaculation	delayedejaculationproducts.com
Emphysema	emphysema-products.com
Eye Bags	eyebagsproducts.com
Folliculitis	folliculitisproducts.com
Gastroparesis	Gastroparesisproduts.com
Granuloma Annulare	garanulomaproducts.com
Grave's Disease	gravesdiseaseproducts.com
Guillain-Barre Syndrome	gbs-products.com
Hand Tremors	handtremorsproducts.com
Hernias	herniasproducts.com
Hidradenitis	hidradenitissuppurativaproducts.com
Hyperhidrosis	hyperhidrosisproducts.com
Keratosis	keratosisproducts.com
Lipoma	lipomaproducts.com
Melasma	melasmaproducts.com
Motor neuron Disease	mndproducts.com
Narcolepsy	narcolepsyproducts.com
Peyronie's Disease	peyroniesproducts.com
Vocal Cord Nodules	vcnproducts.com
Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia	wmg-products.com

 

I checked the registration for some of the sites, and all came back (surprise!) to the same name and address:

   Herbal Reviews
   115 Abercorn Street, M0013
   Paisley, Scotland PA3 4AT
   United Kingdom

I really wish I could find my original notes regarding Syrotab, which were taken in 2006, because I am pretty sure that they were originally run from an address in Paisley (curious to see if it was the same address as noted above), before "moving" to Oslo.  I remember because Himself has a degree in Scottish business law (which I think he used precisely that one time) and I remember grilling him about them at the time.

Of course, I have a strong feeling that the real people behind this site are the same people behind SPAH and I am petty sure behind most of the other "herbal treatment"-themed organized scam sites out there: MAK International, one of whose core product offerings is a comparison shopping engine.

From their site:

Comparison shopping engines is perhaps the most targeted form of advertising possible for a website that intends to sell products. Nearly anyone visiting a comparison shopping engine is looking to purchase something. The way these engines work is by providing a product feed in a standard format as required by the comparison engine. Most engines accept a variety of feed forms like excel sheets, csv files and xml structured information. The standard information required for each product is the product price, a unique product number, product image and a short product description. This information needs to be constantly kept updated and should match exactly what is presented on your website.

 

When a potential customer goes to comaprison shopping site and searches for the product he or she is looking for the products that appear on the top get the highest number of clicks. The way the results are ranked varies from engine to engine. Some engines rank those products higher that pay more for the click, others sort the results by price and some by the relevancy of the product to the search key term. The last approach is particularly applicable to froogle, google's fast growing comparison shopping engine.

So really, their business has little to do with "treatments" and more to do with "clicks".

I sincerely hope that my outing of their scams is not furthering their business...

Gordon's Herbal Research Center: Scam.

There was once a man, a New Zealander based in Auckland, who suffered from Myasthenia Gravis and went to hospitals and doctors all over Australia and New Zealand, but to no avail. His desperation lead to him to take over matters in his own hands and he started to research on alternative medicine for his condition. He sourced many botanical plants and seeds from all over the world after going through numerous modern and ancient handbooks of herbal medicine. Through continuous trial and error he selected some herbs while rejecting others. Eventually he short listed those that showed some efficacy in his trials and combined them in one blend to make the basic formulation for his treatment. Not only were his symptoms relieved, he managed to get rid of Myasthenia Gravis for ever.

Equipped with his powerful discovery, he embarked upon helping others. Some how, he managed to get some small articles squeezed in New Zealand's local newspapers discussing the amazing success he had in treating his condition with natural botanicals.

Around that time, a group of entrepreneurs had started a company called Gordon's Herbal Research Center or GHRC. GHRC was on a mission to document the therapeutic effects of all herbal plants in order to discover products that can be patented and be suitable for marketing.

The newspaper articles caught the attention of one of the members of the company. GHRC conducted some basic tests and found the compound to be highly effective against Myasthenia Gravis. Rights for the formula were purchased from the original discoverer and the compound was named Greveton.

The company started to collect anecdotal data for formal research on Greveton and started testing it in vivo (with live animals) and in vitro (with cell culture study).

After many months of comprehensive Chemical Characterization and testing of the Greveton compound, it was declared highly effective for treatment of Myasthenia Gravis . It was concluded that the product was a novel discovery.

Toxicity studies took more than two years and indicated no toxicity whatsoever.

To date, thousands of patients have been treated with Greveton for Myasthenia Gravis with a success rate of more than 80%.

 

And there was a man, a New Zealander based in Auckland, who chronically suffered from Polycythemia Vera and went to hospitals and doctors all over Australia and New Zealand, but to no avail. His desperation lead to him to take over matters in his own hands and he started to research on alternative medicine for his condition. He sourced many botanical plants and seeds from all over the world after going through numerous modern and ancient handbooks of herbal medicine. Through continuous trial and error he selected some herbs while rejecting others. Eventually he short listed those that showed some efficacy in his trials and combined them in one blend to make the basic formulation for his treatment. Not only were his symptoms relieved, he managed to get rid of Polycythemia Vera for ever...

   

And there was a man, a New Zealander based in Auckland, who chronically suffered from Tinea Versicolor and went to hospitals and doctors all over Australia and New Zealand, but to no avail. His desperation lead to him to take over matters in his own hands and he started to research on alternative medicine for his condition. He sourced many botanical plants and seeds from all over the world after going through numerous modern and ancient handbooks of herbal medicine....

 

And there was a man, a New Zealander based in Auckland, who chronically suffered from Premature Gray Hair and went to hospitals and doctors all over Australia and New Zealand, but to no avail. His desperation lead to him to take over matters in his own hands and he started to research on alternative medicine for his condition...

 

Hang ON!       ...Wait a just a minute!     ...Is this all the same guy?

Well, as the ingredients for Greveton,  Veraceton,  Cloreton,  Pigmenton, are all identical, I guess it was!  Apparently, he also had Costochondritis, Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Abdominal Adhesions, Polymyalgia Rheumatica, and Rectal Prolapse, because the same formula is listed to treat those, too.

Amazing.

Apparently this guy had a few buddies with him on his epic journey for a cure (I guess they left that part of the story out). One of the buddies had Motor Neuron Disease, Hidradenitis Suppurativa, Sjogrens Syndrome, Inclusion Body Myelitis, Benign Essential Tremor, Flatulence, Lichen Planus, Hydrocele,  Granuloma Annulare and Burning Mouth Syndrome, which I guess he cured with his little list of herbs.

No, really; Motor. Neuron. Disease. Which is an umbrella term that includes ALS among other things. Yet he "got rid of it forever", went on to run clinical trial for two years without dying and then treated "...thousands of patients with a success rate of more than 80%.

Pity he's not real, he'd be me new hero.

 

 

So yes, In case you haven't guessed already, You can add Gordon's Herbal Research Center (GHRC), of N312,

Private Bag 92185,

Auckland 1142,

New Zealand

 

...to my list of scam sites. The list of their sites is below (list updated Sept 6th 2009)

 

Abdominal Adhesions	http://sedeton.com/ingredients.html
Achlasia	http://www.celseton.com/ingredients.html
Actinic Keratosis	http://www.treneton.com/ingredients.html
Alopecia	http://www.olceton.com/ingredients.html
Atrial Fibrillation	http://flemeton.com/background.html
Bell's palsy	http://www.pebneton.com/ingredients.html
Benign essential tremor	http://www.betneton.com/ingredients.html
Blepharitis	http://www.phlereton.com/ingredients.html
Bronchiectasis	http://www.creseton.com/ingredients.html
Bullous Pemphigoid	http://www.pempheton.com/ingredients.html
Burning mouth syndrome	http://www.breneton.com/ingredients.html
Cellulitis	http://www.luseton.com/ingredients.html
Costochondritis	http://www.chondreton.com/ingredients.html
Delayed Ejaculation	http://www.delecreton.com/ingredients.html
Emphysema	http://www.hysmeton.com/ingredients.html
Epididymitis	http://www.epidmeton.com/ingredients.html
Eye bags	http://www.gabeton.com/ingredients.html
Flatulence	http://www.flameton.com/ingredients.html
Folliculitis	http://www.felceton.com/ingredients.html
Ganglion cyst	http://www.glenteton.com/ingredients.html
Gastroparesis	http://www.perteton.com/ingredients.html
Granuloma annulare	http://www.greneton.com/ingredients.html
Grave's Disease	http://www.vegeton.com/ingredients.html
Grover's Disease	http://www.graveton.com/ingredients.html
Guillain-Barre Syndrome	http://barbeton.com/ingredients.html
Hand Tremors	http://www.palmeton.com/ingredients.html
Hernias	http://www.rheneton.com/ingredients.html
Hidradenitis Suppurativa	http://www.trendeton.com/ingredients.html
Hydrocele	http://celdeton.com/ingredients.html
Hyperhidrosis	http://www.phreneton.com/ingredients.html
Ichthyosis	http://osmeton.com/ingredients.html
Inclusion body myositis (IBM)	http://www.meyseton.com/ingredients.html
Keloids	http://www.kleneton.com/ingredients.html
Keratosis Pilaris	http://www.kerneton.com/ingredients.html
Lichen Planus	http://www.lichreton.com/ingredients.html
Lipoma	http://www.lemeton.com/ingredients.html
Melasma	http://melseton.com/ingredients.html
Motor Neuron Disease	http://www.troneton.com/ingredients.html
Myasthenia Gravis	http://www.greveton.com/ingredients.html
Myelitis	http://www.larneton.com/ingredients.html
Narcolepsy	http://www.sepreton.com/ingredients.html
Osteomyelitis	http://www.osteton.com/ingredients.html
Pemphigus	http://gesteton.com/ingredients.html
Peripheral Neuropathy	http://www.repeton.com/ingredients.html
Peyronie's Disease	http://peyreton.com/ingredients.html
Polycystic Kidney Disease	http://www.reneton.com/ingredients.html
Polycythemia Vera	http://www.veraceton.com/ingredients.html
Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR)	http://www.rheumeton.com/ingredients.html
Porphyria (All 6 kinds?)	http://www.phrenaton.com/ingredients.html
Post-Polio Syndrome	http://www.polpeton.com/ingredients.html
Post-traumatic Syndrome	http://polpeton.com/ingredients.html
Premature Gray Hair	http://www.pigmeton.com/ingredients.html
Prickly Heat	http://www.preleton.com/ingedients.html
Rectal prolapse	http://www.proleton.com/ingredients.html
Retinal Vein Occlusion	http://www.celceton.com/ingredients.html
Retinitis Pigmentosa	http://www.prigmeton.com/ingredients.html
Scleroderma	http://www.dermeton.com/background.html
Sebaceous Cyst	http://www.cesteton.com/ingredients.html
Seborrheic Keratosis	http://www.sebeton.com/ingredients.html
Sjogrens Syndrome	http://www.neteton.com/ingredients.html
Tinea Versicolor	http://www.cloreton.com/ingredients.html
Trigenimenal Neuralgia	http://www.neureton.com/ingredients.html
Urethritis	http://www.urethreton.com/ingredients.html
Uveitis	http://www.urethreton.com/ingredients.html
Vocal Cord Nodules	http://www.nedeton.com/ingredients.html
Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia	http://www.cremeton.com/background.html

 

Is GHRC related to the other scam sites I have mentioned before? My gut says yes, but I haven't found the proof.

 

Yet.

 

 

Please note:  I will not take responsibility for the language and grammar in the stories at the top of this piece. They were pasted almost directly from the GHRC sites. 

 

P.S. I forgot to mention: The first formula, the one for Myasthenia Gravis, Polycythemia Vera, Tinea Versicolor, Premature gray hair, Costochondritis, Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Polymyalgia Rheumatica and Rectal Prolapse; contains 13.81 mg of strychnine (less commonly known as Strychnos Nuxvomica). From what I can gather, Strychnine is dangerous when you get to about 1.5-2mg per kilogram of body weight (less for some people). So if you do have some of this stuff in the house, don't double up on your dosage and never give it to children. OK I don't know who might give Pigmeton to a 20 pound child, but I thought I would mention it; -just to be safe.

 

 

P.P.S. Hysmeton , Olceton, Felceton, Dermeton, Gabeton, Glenteton, Prigmeton, Nedeton, Cremeton, Creseton, Sepreton, Preleton (for babies!), Osemeton and Gabeton all list 43.47 mgs of Cinnabar as an Ingredient. Cinnabar is Mercury Sulphide (HgS) , also known as Red Mercury, i.e. the stuff from which refined mercury (Hg) is made. Mercury is a known neurotoxin.

 

...but "Cinnabar" sounds so much nicer than "poison" don't you think?

 

Again, never give any of these products to children. Or to anyone.

 

But especially not to children.

SPAH: The Medical Scam Clearinghouse

(This is the fifth -but most important- part of a series. Here are part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4)

Let's just imagine that you have devised a few bogus potions -so-called herbal supplements as  "guaranteed treatment" for almost 300 diseases and conditions from dandruff to cancer.  And let's just say that too many people are skeptical or leery so maybe you make some money, but not quite the millions you expected.  And suppose this isn't quite good enough for you?  You still want to sell MORE snakeoil and rake in more dollars from unsuspecting sick people. But finding new diseases to claim to treat/cure is difficult, because eventually, someone twigs and puts out the alert.  How do you one-up yourself in those circumstances, and market your snakeoil to a wider population?

Simple:  You create a bogus 'society', have it do comparisons of your bogus product against one or two other bogus products with a recommendation to always buy your product.  Here's the kicker:  The other bogus products are also owned by you, but sold by a different set of bogus websites.  So the bogus society can recommend any one of them, and you get the cash anyway.

Yes. You create two or three so called 'guaranteed treatments' for the SAME condition, market each one under a different bogus website and then set up a bogus "independent institute" to compare them all against each other, and then to "objectively" recommend one of them!

It's pure genius.   GENIUS!

Because no matter which bogus product the unsuspecting sick person chooses through your bogus "research institute" YOU get the (real) money.  Because let's face it: in this scenario, the only thing that is real is the money people lose.  And maybe they lose real time and real health.  While the owners of the bogus products and websites are laughing all the way to the (real) bank.

It's a rather sickening kind of genius, actually.  Completely Evil Genius, in fact.  I think I have found the Frankenstein's monster of the Internet..

Remember how I said that Oslo health Solutions had over 280 websites registered, but I had only found about 60 of them?  Well, I think  I have found the other 220.  And 295 from another site.  And maybe another few hundred elsewhere. I physically can't count them all!   

So here is how it works: Let's say that I am looking for a cure for Syringomyelia (which is where I started with all this stuff, let's stick with what we know, here). Syringomyelia (SM)  is a potentially devastating and excrutiatingly painful  degenerative condition of the spinal cord.  It is really difficult to treat, and many myths abound, which means that many doctors "don't believe in" the pain of it. So many people with SM have a hard time finding real help. Or they may not have insurance. So say I am in this position and I find this site, run by The Society for the Promotion of Alternative Health (SPAH -and I don't think those particular initials are an accident BTW), claiming to compare three available natural alternatives. 

So we read this, and my options are:

Omiglatex, which is marketed by Botanical Sources (BS). Omiglatex (and all the Botanical Sources products that I have checked) tries to claim a connection with the Mayo Clinic, just because Mayo once said something like plants are a good source of drugs (Duh! Most commercial drugs come from plants!). But other than that, BS makes few direct claims of its own, except for a money back guarantee and 100% natural ingredients. 

Don't take our word for it and use Omiglatex for a few days. You will begin to experience incremental long term changes. If you don't, we pledge to refund you in full, including delivery charges under our full no-questions-asked refund policy. This guarantee is valid for 60 days from the date of purchase allowing enough time for you to experience results with Omiglatex.

That  sounds stunningly familiar, doesnt' it?

I love the ingredients list for Omiglatex, which include our old friend Nux Vomica (better known as Strychnine  or "rat poison" here in the States); Coral calcium; Indian Rennett, a herb which is used to coagulate  ...stuff  and wattle bark, an old Indian herbal remedy for premature ejaculation

What does all this have to do with treating brain fog, constant burning nerve pain, paralysis and incontinence?  Dunno.  I suspect nothing at all.

So I checked out the next option on the list: Syrotab. 

Yes. Our old friend from Oslo Health Solutions.  

Nuff said about that. It's a proven scam...

 

 Maybe the third option will be the charm?  Right?

Mignitin seems to be a little different. 

It is from Berlin Homeo  Products in ...well, Berlin and is a hemopathic treatment for Syringomyelia   "The amazing 100% guaranteed treatment for Syringomyelia that is bound to leave you amazed!"  (It surely will!  You will be amazed that you paid money for this shite!)

 

Ant they have testimonials! 

 "Your organization is very professional and thank you for the continued support. This is the first time I have been introduced to homeopathy. I never thought it would work so well." - Betty - Florida 

"I can't thank you enough" - Mark - NY

"All I can say is amazing! I was about to give up after trying so many products." - Jessie - California

AND they accept PayPal!  Aren't they nice?

I'm sot too sure about the color scheme, or the picture of something that looks like the bastard love child between a feather duster and a lichen.

Mignitin lists its ingredients too.  You know, I have to LOVE these people for their consistency. They may change the colors and pictures around, but they always have almost exactly the same layout and links and very similar wording.

Here are the ingredients

Ingredient Name Dilution

Sepia D3+30C
Aesculus D1+10C
Cimicifug D1+10C
Calc fluor D6+60C
Baryta carb D6+60C
Rhus tox D1+10C
Kali carb D1+100C

Sepia =  cuttlefish ink

Aesculus = california horse-chestnut

Cimicifug... I think this is Cimicifuga Racemosa, which is Black Cohosh and sometimes used to treat menopause and some muscle (not nerve) pain

Calc fluor  = calcium flouride. -Used for "hard, stony glands" and a host of other stuff in the Quack Bible, my favorite being "threatened apoplexy"

Baryta Carb = Baryta Carbonica  "This remedy brings aid to scrofulous children, especially if they are backward mentally and physically, are dwarfish, do not grow and develop, have scrofulous ophthalmia, swollen abdomen, take cold easily, and then Always have swollen tonsils. Persons subject to quinsy... (WTF is quinsy?  Ah.  It is Peritonsillar abscess (PTA).  I prefer quinsy)...

Rhus tox = Rhus toxicodendron AKA poison ivy!

"Mignitin's composition is 100% safe and all its ingredients are purely natural and free from any side effects."

Kali carb  = Kali Carbonicum  and... oh hey!  I love this  I found it on a homeopathic site:  patient can broadly be described as compulsive - rigidly adhering to a code of ethics and rules. It is very difficult for the patient to express feelings and he exercises strong control over his emotions. Duty is one of the most important concepts for the Kali Carbonicum constitutional type. He will not park in a yellow zone. He will always return to a shop to give back change if he was given too much. He sees things in black and white. The patient is often very stoical. He neither complains about (nor notices) the stress he is under until the situation is very severe indeed. Things outside his control are very upsetting.

 That sounds rather like a description of an Aspie to me...

 ...but NOTHING like a Syringomyelia patient (unless its an Aspie with syringomyelia!).

 

So there you have it! Three Syringomyelia remedies, all bogus.

 

Bus OSM, I hear you say,  Maybe it is a co-incidence?  Maybe only the Syringomyelia treatments are bogus. Because I am so desperate for help, I want to believe! Well, I am nothing if not thorough when it comes to this stuff, so I checked out options for a few more conditions.

Leukemia i.e. cancer of the blood -all types apparently treated by one product from each of these companies.

Leukotab - from Oslo Health Solutions

Kemitin - from Berlin Homeo Products (The amazing 100% guaranteed treatment for Leukemia that is bound to leave you amazed!  Yeah. Amazed you're DEAD!)

 

Multiple System Atrophy -a gradual and fatal shutdown of the body's autonomic system. Usually fatal within two years of diagnosis.

Alpharax - from Botanical sources

Atrotab - from Olso Health Solutio...  ...uh-OH!  Typo!  Atrotab is actually (allegedly) for optic atrophy. Atrophtab  is for MSA.  That's a big mistake if you are running a legitimate service, but a simple one if you are running a SCAM!  Those two actually use different formulations, you see. Like that makes a difference!  I'm sure they are both completely bogus.

Porphotin (from Berlin Homeo Products)  -contains Arsenic.  Nice!

 

Parkinson's Disease

Niprotax -from Botanical sources

Parkotab -from Oslo Health Solutions

Parkotin -from Berlin Homeo Products (site currently unavailable)

 

Musclar Dystropy

Dystratax (from Botanical Sources)

MD-tab (from Oslo Health Solutions)

Laritin  from Berlin Homeo Products

 

Do you see the pattern?  A product that end in "x" from Botanical Sources, then a product that ends in "tab" from Oslo Health Solutions, and lastly a product that ends in "tin" from Berlin Homeo products.  The full list of SPAH websites and the diseases for which they claim to present "treatment options" is below. There are 295 of them.

295 x 2 or 3 (we'll call it 2½) = approximately 737 bogus products.  And I thought 60 was a lot!

SPAH claims to have no affiliation with the products mentioned.  Of course they claim that! This is perfectly in keeping with Rule #1 of scams: Lie Big.

I did some searches on Botanical Sources and on Berlin Homeo Products. I couldn't find much about them.  They claim to be based out of Rome and Berlin.

Here is the contact info, which is probably meaningless.

Botanical Sources
Via Canova 24, Suite # NR 320
Roma 00186
Italy

[email protected]

The Berlin Homeo Products (BHP) stuff I know even less about. 

Berlin Homeo Products
Markgrafenstr. 56, Suite 110
Berlin, 10117
Germany
4487102

[email protected]

The websites I checked are registered to Botanical Sources or Berlin Homeo Products as appropriate.  But all of their sites that I have checked look identical for each organization. The BHP sites even have the same picture of the feather duster/ lichen cross, and the exact same testimonials from the same people, regardless of the disease claimed to treat. Did it just happen that 200+ people called "Mark" in NY, 200+ called "Jessie" in CA and 200+ people called Betty in Florida just happened to contact them and say the exact same thing about 200+ different products?

Ummm-hmmm.

 

So then I searched on SPAH.  The websites I checked are owned by MAK-International. Here is their home page. Notice anything?

Yep. You immediately notice that the design is about identical to all the Berlin Homeo Products sites

 ...but hold on second...  That woman looks like... she IS!  It's my old friend: Vacant Biracial woman from most of the Oslo Health Solutions sites!

Not only that, she is right there with her buddies, Mr Serious and Mr Trying to look Sincere (who is still trying to look sincere!).  They are the same people!  Wow!  What a total co-incidence that MAK International, Oslo Health Solutions and Berlin Homeo Products use exactly the same web designers or models.

Incredible. 

Literally.

So who is MAK International?  I can't find any incorporation information, but is seems to be run by two brothers (or cousins) of (I figure) Pakistani descent who were born and educated in Manchester, England (remember my theory that it was probably a couple of young techies?  It appears I was correct).   MAK International is (officially) run out of Pakistan. If I am right, that they are Pakistani- English, they are perfectly positioned to run a scam of this kind. Born in the UK, they would have full EU citizen status, able to travel or open offices anywhere in the EU.  Having Pakistani citizenship, presumably from their parents, would give them access to cheap labor and herbal crap and enable them to set up office in Pakistan.

Here is their information (I got it off their website, so it is public domain.)

Name: Mustafa Arif
Position: CEO
Born: Manchester, UK (1979)
Qualifications:

BENG Mechanical Engineering
Imperial College, London
CCNA - Cisco - year 2000

Responsibilities:

Implementing the marketing solutions devised for clients.

Experience:

Mustafa has been involved in internet marketing for the last eight years since 1998. He has seen the market evolve over the years.

Core Expertise:

• Search Engine Promotion
• Link Building
• Paid Inclusions
• CPC Marketing
• Affiliate Marketing
• Ad Networking

Name: Kashif  Arif
Position: Customer Liaison Officer
Born: Manchester, UK (1978)

Qualifications:

BENG Electronic Systems Engineering
UMIST, Manchester

Responsibilities:

Liaising with clients providing them pre-sales support. Understanding the client's needs and devising marketing plans according to the client's business type.

Experience:

Kashif held a similar position in Pace Technologies in Cambridge, one of the world's largest producers of digital satellite decoding devices. He was responsible for negotiating contracts for Pace's clients all over the world.

Core Expertise:

• Negotiating contracts
• Devising marketing plans in lieu of the client's needs and budget

 You may contact us via email, telephone, mail and in person.

Email

Sales Enquiries: [email protected]

Existing Clients: [email protected]

Office Address

2nd Floor - 33 Block Z (Commercial)
Defense Housing Authority (DHA)
Lahore 54792
Pakistan

Phone

0092-42-5749903
0092-300-4007904

Fax

0092-42-5749902

While I was researching all this, I must say the Botanical Sources link (or lack thereof) was bothering me. I was having a hard time directly connecting BS with the other three. But something was bugging me: something that I knew was there, but I was missing. Then I realized what it was: 

The logos.

More specifically, the little leafy or swirly things that is used in every logo.  There are always two, usually in complementary tones, and they usually look like leaves or a Pieces or ying/yang symbol.  Check out the leafy things and the "product shots" used by Botanical Sources and OSH

Botanical Sources

 

 

 

 

And these from Oslo Health Solutions.  The are not alike at all. Are they?

 

 

  

 

And we have some more from OSH, this time the "Pisces" version..

 

I like how Ejucatab has both 'Pices' and 'Leafy thingys'

Berlin Homeo Products (BHP) change the pattern a little. More abstract leaves and this time they change in size, not colour. (way to mix it up!)

And of course, MAK International:

 

 

   

 

You know, I found this little dot thingy on the corner of all the MAK International pages, but I don't have the right skills/software to blow it up properly. It looks intriguingly like it could be an amalgam of some of the other logos.  The colors are certainly correct.

If this turns out to be the case, that wouldn't surprise me in the least. These people seem to like their little inside jokes:  "Murakab" -which is an Islamic term meaning "complex ignorance" as an ingredient in many of their products; The fact that  initials of Society for the Promotion of Alternative Health make the word "SPAH" (think English accent) and the wee dot thingy all point to a rather ignoble disregard for their target market: i.e. sick people and their families.

The funniest joke of all is this: The Society for the Promotion of Alternative Health, -although is doesn't claim directly to be a registered charity or non-profit agency  ...ACCEPTS DONATIONS

"SPAH is a donor based organization. It accepts donations from only two sources; volunteering professionals who dedicate their time to the activities of SPAH and secondly from individuals who out of their own will want to donate to SPAH's cause as a result of benefiting from of its sponsored initiatives. It is not possible for us to accept any other kind of donations in order to ensure minimal outside influence on the organization's work."

Yes, they will take your money to further their (ig)noble cause (i.e. ripping off sick people). Except  they won't accept it if you are a corporation or organization. I figure because a corporation or organization will report such a donation on their taxes.  Too many questions might be asked then.  There's your "minimal outside influence on the organization's work".  They don't want Uncle Sam, Mother England or ...Auntie(?) Pakistan asking too many questions.

Below is the (new) Grand List of conditions these guys claim to treat. it is rather an eye-opener. If you have any of the conditions below, or know anyone who has them, please spread the word about this dreadful scam. I am not saying this to get more hits on OSM. In fact, I didn't even want to publish this myself (I have some concerns about potential recriminations from the Arif boys).  But the one person I know in De Meeja hasn't gotten back to me, and I feel the word needs to get out there. People need to be protected. Please post the link to this story to listservs, forums, messageboards or groups for any of these diseases that you might belong to. A scam only works when it is secret. If we generate enough exposure about MAK International, we can be sure they can profit no more from the misery of others.

I warn you to be sure your anti-virus and anti spyware software is all up-to-date before you click on any of the links because (this was taken from one of the SPAH sites)

Passive Information Collection

As you navigate through a Web site, certain information can be passively collected (that is, gathered without your actively providing the information) using various technologies and means, such as Internet Protocol addresses, cookies, Internet tags, and navigational data collection. We use Internet Protocol (IP) addresses on this site. An IP Address is a number assigned to your computer by your Internet service provider so you can access the Internet and is generally considered to be non-personally identifiable information, because in most cases an IP address is dynamic (changing each time you connect to the Internet), rather than static (unique to a particular user's computer). We use your IP address to diagnose problems with our server, report aggregate information, determine the fastest route for your computer to use in connecting to our site, and administer and improve the site

So having been fairly warned, please do check this out. it is quite mind-boggling.

Abdominal Adhesions	http://adhesions-options.com
Acanthosis Nigricans	http://acanthosisnigricans-options.com
Achlasia	http://achalasia-options.com
Acrocyanosis	http://acrocyanosis-options.com
Acute Broncitis	http://acutebronchitis-options.com
Adenopathy	http://adenopathy-options.com
Adhd	http://adhd-options.com
Adrenoleukodystrophy	http://adrenoleukodystrophy-options.com
Agalactia	http://agalactia-options.com
Age-Related Macular Degeneration	http://agesight-options.com
Alkaptonuria	http://alkaptonuria-options.com
Allergic rhinitis	http://allergicrhinitis-options.com
Alopecia	http://alopecia-options.com
ameloblastoma	http://ameloblastoma-options.com
Amenorrhea	http://amenorrhea-options.com
Amlyoidosis	http://amyloidosis-options.com
Angina	http://angina-options.com
Anginoedema	http://angioedema-options.com
Angionma	http://angioma-options.com
Anklyosing Spondylitis	http://ankylosingspondylitis-options.com
Anorectal Fistula	http://fistula-options.com
Antiphospholipid Syndrome	http://antiphospholipid-options.com
Aquagenic Pruritus	http://pruritus-options.com
Arachnoid cysts	http://arachnoidcysts-options.com
Artery stenosis	http://arterystenosis-options.com
Ascites	http://ascites-options.com
Asthma	http://asthma-options.com
Atelectasis	http://atelectasis-options.com
Atherosclerosis	http://atherosclerosis-options.com
Athlete's foot	http://athletesfoot-options.com
Atrialfibrillation	http://atrialfibrillation-options.com
Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia	http://hemolyticanemia-options.com
Azospermia	http://azospermia.com
Behcet's Syndrome	http://behcets-options.com
Bell's palsy	http://bellspalsy-options.com
Benign essential blaphasospasm	http://benignessentialblepharospasm.com
Benign essential tremor	http://benignessentialtremor-options.com
Blepharitis	http://blepharitis-options.com
Blisters	http://blisters-options.com
Blood in the Semen	http://semenblood-options.com
Bone and Joint Tuberculosis	http://bonetb-options.com
Bone Degeneration	http://bonedegeneration.com
Bowen's Disease	http://bowensdisease-options.com
Bradycardia	http://bradycardia-options.com
Breath odor	http://breathodor-options.com
Bromhidrosis	http://bromhidrosis-options.com
Bronchiectasis	http://bronchiectasis-options.com
Bulima	http://bulimia-options.com
Bullous pemphigoid	http://bullouspemphigoid-options.com
Burning mouth syndrome	http://burningmouth-options.com/
Canker sore	http://cankersore-options.com
Carbunkles	http://carbuncles-options.com
Carcinoid syndrome	http://carcinoid-options.com
Cardiomyopathy	http://cardiomyopathy-options.com
Cataract	http://cataract-options.com
Cellulitis	http://cellulitis-options.com
Cerebal palsy	http://cerebralpalsy-options.com
CerebraxReiter's Syndrome	http://reiterssyndrome-options.com
Cervical spine ( i.e. "neck"!)	http://cervicalspine-options.com
Cervical Spondylosis	http://spondylosis-options.com
Cervicitis	http://cervicitis-options.com
Cheilitis	http://cheilitis-options.com
Chloracne	http://chloracne-options.com
Chondromalacia Patellae	http://chondromalacia-options.com
Chordoma	http://chordoma-options.com
Cluster Headache	http://clusterheadache-options.com
Condyloma	http://condyloma-options.com
Congestive Heart Failure	http://congestiveheart-options.com
Constipation	http://constipation-options.com
Cronkhite-Canada syndrome	http://cronkhitecanada.com
Cushings disease	http://cushings-options.com
Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome	http://cyclicvomiting-options.com
Dandruff	http://dandruff-options.com
Dark Circles	http://eyebags-options.com
Deep Venous Thrombosis	http://venousthrombosis-options.com
Delayed Ejaculation	http://delayedejaculation-options.com
Dequervains tendinitis	http://dequervainstendinitis-options
Dermatomyositis	http://dermatomyositis-options.com
Diabetes Insipidus	http://diabetes-options.com
Diverticular Disease	http://diverticular-options.com
Drematofibroma	http://dermatofibroma-options.com
Drooling	http://drooling-options.com
Drug Induced Liver Disease	http://liverdisease-options.com
Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding	http://uterinebleeding-options.com
Dyshidrosis	http://dyshidrosis-options.com
Dyspepsia	http://dyspepsia-options.com
Eczema	http://eczema-options.com
Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS)	http://ehlersdanlos-options.com
emphysema	http://emphysema-options.com
Enlarged Tonsils	http://enlargedtonsils-options.com
Eosinophilia	http://eosinophilia-options.com
Epididymitis	http://epididymitis-options.com
Erysipelas	http://erysipelas-options.com
Erythema multiforme	http://erythemamultiforme-options.com
Erythroderma	http://erythroderma-options.com
Erythromelalgia	http://erythromelalgia-options.com
Eyelid ptosis	http://eyelidptosis-options.com
Fahr's Disease	http://fahrsdisease-options.com
Fatty liver	http://fattyliver-options.com
Fibroadenoma of Breast	http://breastfibroadenoma-options.com
Fibrocystic Breast Disease	http://fibrocysticbreast-options.com
Flatulence	http://flatulence-options.com
Folliculitis	http://folliculitis-options.com
Formaldehyde poisoning	http://formaldehydepoisoning-options.com
Friedreich's Ataxia	http://ataxia-options.com
Frostbite	http://frostbite-options.com
Frozen shoulder	http://frozenshoulder-options.com
Ganglion cyst	http://ganglion-options.com
Gastritis	http://gastritis-options.com
Gastro paresis	http://gastroparesis-options.com
Gilbert's Syndrome	http://gilbertsyndrome-options.com
Gingivitis	http://gingivitis-options.com
Glaucoma	http://glaucoma-options.com
Globus hystericus	http://globushystericus-options.com
Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia	http://glossopharyngealneuralgia-options.com
Gonorrhea	http://gonorrhea-options.com/index.html
Granuloma annulare	http://granulomaannulare-options.com
Grave's disease	http://gravesdisease-options.com
Grover's Disease	http://grovers-options.com/index.html
Guillain-Barre Syndrome	http://guillainbarre-options.com
gynecomastia	http://gynecomastia-options.com
Hand tremors	http://handtremors-options.com
Hearing loss	http://hearingloss-options.com
Hemmorhoids (what, no Pileen?)	http://hemorrhoids-options.com
Hepatic Hemangioma	http://hemangioma-options.com
Hereditary Fructose Intolerence	http://fructoseintolerance-options.com
Hernias	http://hernias-options.com
Herpes Simplex and Zoster	http://herpes-options.com
Herpetiform dermatitis	http://herpetiformisdermatitis-options.com
Hidradenitis Suppurativa	http://hidradenitis-options.com
Hives	http://hives-options.com
Hookworm	http://hookworm-options.com
Horner's Syndrome	http://hornerssyndrome-options.com
Hydrocele	http://hydrocele-options.com
hydrocephalus	http://hydrocephalus-options.com
Hydronephrosis	http://hydronephrosis-options.com
Hyperhidrosis	http://hyperhidrosis-options.com
Hypertension	http://hypertension-options.com
Hypertensive retinopathy	http://retinopathy-options.com
Hypotension	http://hypotension-options.com
Hysteria	http://hysteria-options.com
Ichthyosis	http://ichthyosis-options.com
Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura	http://purpura-options.com
Iga Nephropathy	http://iganephropathy-options.com
Impetigo	http://impetigo-options.com
Inclusion body myositis (IBM)	http://myositis-options.com
Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy	http://cholestasis-options.com
Irritable Bowel Syndrome	http://irritablebowel-options.com
Jock itch	http://jockitch-options.com
Keloids	http://keloids-options.com
Keratoacanthoma	http://keratoacanthoma-options.com
Leg ulcers	http://legulcers-options.com
Lennox Gastaut Syndrome	http://lennoxgastaut-options.com
Leukemia	http://leukemia-options.com
Lichen Planus	http://lichenplanus-options.com
Lichen Simplex Chronicus	http://lichensimplex-options.com
Lipoma	http://lipoma-options.com
Liver cirrhosis	http://livercirrhosis-options.com
Liver cyst	http://livercyst-options.com
Low back pain	http://lowbackpain-options.com
Lymphadenitis	http://lymphadenitis-options.com
Malabsorption	http://malabsorption-options.com
Male Infertility	http://maleinfertility-options.com
Mastitis	http://mastitis-options.com
Melasma	http://melasma-options.com
Meniere's Disease	http://menieres-options.com
Menorrhagia	http://menorrhagia-options.com
Mental Retardation (Grrrrr)	http://mentalretardation-options.com
Molluscum Contagiosum	http://molluscum-options.com
Motor Neuron Disease	http://motorneuron-options.com
Multiple System Athrophy	http://multiplesystematrophy-options.com
Muscular Dystrophy	http://musculardystrophy-options.com
Muscular Fasciculation	http://muscularfasciculation.com
Myasthenia Gravis	http://myastheniagravis-options.com
Myelitis	http://myelitis-options.com
Myocarditis	http://myocarditis-options.com
Myopic degeneration	http://myopicdegeneration-options.com
Narcolepsy	http://narcolepsy-options.com
Nasal Polyps (Note Correct Spelling)	http://nasalpolypus.com
Nephrotic Syndrome	http://nephrotic-options.com
neutropenia	http://neutropenia-options.com
Obesity	http://obesity-options.com
Optic atrophy	http://opticatrophy-options.com
Osteo necrosis	http://osteonecrosis-options.com
Osteomyelitis	http://osteomyelitis-options.com
Osteoporosis	http://osteoporosis-options.com
Otitis media	http://otitismedia-options.com
Pancreatitis	http://pancreatitis-options.com
Papular Urtucaria	http://papularurticaria-options.com
Parkinsonism	http://parkinsonism-options.com
Paroxysmal Tachycardia	http://paroxysmaltachycardia-options.com
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease	http://pelvicinflammatory-options.com
Pemphigus	http://pemphigus-options.com
penumothorax	http://pneumothorax-options.com
Peptic ulcer	http://pepticulcer-options.com
Periodontitis	http://periodontitis-options.com
Peripheral Neuropathy	http://peripheralneuropathy-options.com
Peyronie's Disease	http://peyronies-options.com
Pharangitis	http://pharyngitis-options.com
photodermatitis	http://photodermatitis-options.com
Photosensitivity	http://photosensitivity-options.com
Pick's Disease	http://picksdisease-options.com
Pityriasis Alba	http://pityriasis-options.com
Pityriasis Roseca	http://pityriasisrosea-options.com
Pityriasis Rubra	http://pityriasisrubra-options.com
Pneumothorax	http://pneumothorax-options.com
Polycystic Kidney Disease	http://polycystickidney-options.com
Polycythemia Vera	http://polycythemiavera-options.com
Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR)	http://polymyalgiarheumatica-options.com
Polyps	http://polyps-options.com
Porphyria (All 6 kinds?)	http://porphyria-options.com
Postconcussion syndrome	http://postconcussion-options.com
Post-Polio Syndrome	http://postpolio-options.com
Post-traumatic Syndrome	http://post-traumatic-options.com
Precocious puberty	http://precociouspuberty-options.com
Pre-eclampsia (pregnancy complication)	http://preeclampsia-options.com
Premature Gray Hair	http://grayhair-options.com
Pressure Ulcer	http://pressureulcer-options.com
Priapism	http://priapism-options.com
Prickly heat	http://pricklyheat-options.com
Prostatitis	http://prostatitis-options.com
Pruritus Ani	http://pruritusani-options.com
PseudoTumor Cerebri	http://pseudotumorcerebri-options.com
Raynauds Syndrome	http://raynauds-options.com
Rectal prolapse	http://rectalprolapse-options.com
Renal Artery Stenosis	http://renalarterystenosis-options.com
Renal Failure	http://renalfailure-options.com
Restless Leg Syndrome	http://restlessleg-options.com
Retinal Vein Occlusion	http://retinalveinocclusion-options.com
Retinitis Pigmentosa	http://retinitispigmentosa-options.com
Rheumatoid Arthritis	http://rheumatoidarthritis-options.com
Ringworm	http://ringworm-options.com
Rosacea	http://rosacea-options.com
Salivary Duct Stones	http://ductstones-options.com
Scabies	http://scabies-options.com
Schistosomiasis	http://schistosomiasis-options.com
Schizophrenia (now that is dangerous!)	http://schizophrenia-options.com
Sciatica	http://sciatica-options.com
Scleroderma	http://scleroderma-options.com
Sebaceous Cyst	http://sebaceouscyst-options.com
Seborrheic Keratosis	http://seborrheickeratosis-options.com
Sensitive Teeth	http://sensitiveteeth-options.com
Shingles	http://shingles-options.com
Sick Sinus Syndrome	http://sicksinus-options.com
Sinus Tachycardia	http://sinustachycardia-options.com
Sjogrens Syndrome	http://sjogrens-options.com
Skin Abscess	http://abscess-options.com
Skin Tags	http://skintags-options.com
Soft Tissue Sarcomas	http://softtissuesarcomas-options.com
Spasmodic Dysphonia	http://spasmodictorticollis-options.com
Spider Veins	http://spidervein-options.com
Spinal Muscular Atrophy	http://spinalmuscularatrophy-options.com
Stroke (...REALLY?)	http://stroke-options.com
Sunburn (check the privacy policy)	http://sunburn-options.com
Syphilis	http://syphilis-options.com
Syringomyelia	http://syringomyelia-options.com
Teething troubles	http://teething-options.com
Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome	http://tmj-options.com
Tetanus	http://tetanus-options.com
Thalassemia minor	http://thalassemiaminor-options.com
Thrombocythemia	http://thrombocythemia-options.com
Thyroid Nodule	http://thyroidnodule-options.com
Thyroiditis	http://thyroiditis-options.com
Tick Bite	http://tickbite-options.com
Tinea	http://tinea-options.com
Tinea Versicolor	http://tineaversicolor-options.com
Tinnitus	http://tinnitus-options.com
Trigenimenal Neuralgia	http://trigenimenalneuralgia-options.com
Trimethylaminuria	http://trimethylaminuria-options.com
Ulcerative Colitis	http://colitis-options.com
Undescended Testicle	http://undescendedtesticle-options.com
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding	http://intestinalbleeding-options.com
Urethritis	http://urethritis-options.com
Urticaria Pigmentosa	http://urticariapigmentosa-options.com
Uterine Fibroids	http://uterinefibroids-options.com
Uterine Prolapse	http://uterineprolapse-options.com
Uveitis	http://uveitis-options.com
Vitreous Hemorrhage	http://vitreoushemorrhage-options.com
Vocal Cord Nodules	http://vocalcordnodules-options.com
Vocal Cord Paralysis	http://vocalcordparalysis-options.com
Von Willebrand Disease	http://vonwillebrand-options.com
Vulvovaginitis	http://vulvovaginitis-options.com
Vulvular Dystrophy	http://vulvardystrophy-options.com
Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia	http://macroglobulinemia-options.com
Warts	http://warts-options.com
Wilson's Disease	http://wilsons-options.com
Wiskott Aldrich Syndrome	http://wiskottaldrich.com
XXXX (Look Ma!  I found the template!)	http://legulcers-options.com/aboutus.html

Many of these conditions are relatively benign or harmless. However, some are serious conditions: MSA, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Muscular Dystrophy, Syringomyelia, Ascites, Stroke, Pseudotumor Cerebri, renal failure, leukemia

Some are targeted at pregnant women (preeclampsia, Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy),

Some at babies (teething, prickly heat)

And some are just evil  (Mental retardation, schizophrenia, gonorrhea, syphilis)

Please spread the word and help shut these people down.

NOTE: Special thanks to a reader,  Kathryn who first sussed the SPAH connection.

The Scams Just Don't Stop...

A new reader, Kathryn, who was angered by my post exposing the OHS scams, has done some Internet noodling for herself and uncovered a whole new series of stuff (thank you, Kathryn!).  I am working to get the whole list together. If you are interested in helping, please e-mail me, because there is a LOT of stuff here and I have been extra seizurey of late, therefore my concentration and attention span is particularly poor right now.

You know, when I was initially doing the research on scams, I was saying to myself there had better be nothing in here claiming to cure Autism or Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. Because that, my friends, would have angered me beyond reason. I was quite angry enough at the whole "rat poison and hairballs as a cure for Parkinson's thing. I think had I found an 'AutieTab' or similar, I would probably have started shopping for explosives and booking a flight to Norway.

So I am glad that enough time has passed now since I finished part III,  for me to look this little beastie in the eye and only get mad enough to turn the air a nice dark shade of indigo...

Hey, guess what? Danlotab is a completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for Ehlers Danlos Syndrome!  Now where did I hear THAT before?  Oh,  I dunno... Only about 70 other places!

The audacity of these people just floors me.  I mean, it floors me each time. I just don't get immune to this, ever.  And every time I think I have found them all, and reached the end of this story, another thread shows up. I pull on the new thread only to find it is attached to a whole set of other threads and the web just gets bigger and bigger...  I wonder how many people work fulltime to perpetrate these scams?  And I wonder what they would achieve if they used their powers for good? Because this operation, for all it's ignoble, low-lived dispicability, is actually quite clever and probably requires quite a lot of resourcefulness and ingenuity to run.

But instead, they choose to single out the sick and vulnerable, shamelessly lie to them and try to scam them out of their dwindling cash.

Bastards.

Anyhoo... back to Danlotab:

I immediately recognized the ingredient list, of course. It is our old friend formula #2, also marketed as Pileen in Pakistan, for the treatment of piles (hemorrhoids), and apparently re-branded by Oslo Health Solutions (for it is they, of course) as a treatment for -not only EDS, but also as a "guaranteed and clinically proven" treatment for Arachnoid cysts, Ascites, Multiple System Atrophy. Chordoma, Chronkite-Canada Syndrome, Teething (really!), Muscular Fasciculation, Horner's Syndrome, Lenox Gastault Syndrome, Megaloblastic Anemia, Myelodysplastic syndromes, Benign Essential Blepharospasm, Pseudotumor Cerebri, Enlarged Tonsils, Spasmodic Torticollis, Benign Essential Tremor, Kugelberg-Welander Disease (i.e. SMA type III), and Wiskott Aldrich Syndrome.

Its unbelievable, isn't it?

I do ask all my EDS friends NOT to buy this product and to spread the word that this is a scam.

...and keep watching this space. Because there is more to come on this topic.

A lot more, unfortunately.

Oslo Health Solutions: Preying On The Sick Part III

I'm kind of sick talking about these people by now, to be honest with you. I have devoted hours and hours of rather nauseating research to Oslo Health Solutions and their claims. There are many, many more hours of work that could be done; -just on the Internet alone, before one starts on private and other channels, but I don't have the resources for it, financially,  physically or spiritually.

But there are two areas I do want to explore:  How people like this might think, because it seems to me,  their thought processes are very different than us trusting honest normal people. Maybe getting into their brains a little will help us to beware of others of their ilk.

And I also want to let you know how you can fight back; against people like this in general and against Oslo Health Solutions (OHS) in particular.  Because let's face it: Oslo Health Solutions run a pretty despicable operation and they need to be stopped.  Now.

So how do they think they can get away with it?  I have thought about this and I think I figured out a few um ....principles for Internet fraud.

1. Lie Big:
   It is a concept con-men have down cold, but one that most decent people can't get their heads around:  If you are going to lie to people: Lie big. Don't bend or massage the truth.  People are expecting that. Most normal people lie small, They exaggerate or use words like "almost" or "virtual".  But the truth is usually somewhere underneath. People expect this and watch out for exaggerations and small lies. People generally don't expect a lie to be totally bald-faced and to have no relation to the truth. Therefore we see the grandiose claims OHS make and we expect there is some truth to them. This is why OHS were so smart in their pitch. They understood this and therefore they sold so high, but delivered so low, they seem to have flown right underneath most radars.  
    
2. Divide and Conquer: 
   People with specific illnesses don't generally go looking for herbal treatments for other illnesses, so if one product was exposed as a fraud, then it is just that one out of ...what?  ...about 60 now that I have found?... I figure OHS simply dump the product that was exposed, find a new disease, re-brand the website and labels as "new disease-Tab" and then carry on selling the exact same product to a different market.
   
   I guess OHS didn't expect anyone to search on more than one or two of the diseases they cover. The must have figured that chances that someone would work out that they are selling  the same list of ingredients as  a completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for up to nineteen (19) different conditions, from teething troubles to Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), which is generally fatal within two years of diagnosis (Elizabeth at Screw Bronze! has MSA. Read her blog if you want some graphic descriptions of what it does to one .... and   -Quick! give her some shallots and Red Earth!  That'll be bound to cure her...)
   
   
3. Avoid well-organized groups:
   There is No MS-Tab, no Breast Cancer-Tab, no Autism or Aspie-Tab, no Alzheimer's-Tab and I think there is a very good reason for this. It is probably the same reason Cardio-tab no longer exists:  These conditions are highly public and have well-populated organizations and lots of support groups surrounding them, the jig would be up pretty quickly with most of these conditions. -I was actually surprised to find MD-tab, Leukotab and Parkotab, as they are also quite well organized too.  
    
4. Use the Global Market to confuse your  umm... "customers":
   If you set up shop based out of a small, little understood country in Scandinavia, then ship your product from Pakistan, most normal sick people won't be able to figure out how to take action against you from halfway around the world... 
   
   But keep reading.  I have found a fair bit of information on this.

I have two imaginary scenarios for who could be behind Oslo Health Solutions:  In the first one, it is a couple of teenagers, now young men, who started it as little more than a lark out of someone's bedroom, not fully comprehending the real lives that could be effected behind the illness they researched on-line to create new markets for a Pakistani Hemorrhoid preparation.

It the other scenario, it was started very deliberately by adults who have no regard for others, knew exactly what they were doing and are in this game to make money, not caring at all who gets hurt in the process.

Regardless, it is wrong.

Several people asked me, both in comments and through other channels, if we could inform the FDA about this. I don't think the FDA has any interest, as natural remedies and herbal supplements are not very regulated here in the US. However, they might be interested to investigate if they thought Americans were being sold Strychnine as a supposed cure for Parkinson's disease.   I will look into this.

However, FDA aside (for now), the Norwegian government DOES regulate (and tax!) natural remedies. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Norwegian Medicines Agency, and they have an English version of their website, and of their contacts page (how cool is that?), complete with e-mail addresses, so you can send the links directly. I love Scandinavian efficiency!

Now, I suspect that Oslo Health Solutions are trying to get around some of the European laws and regulations governing sales of herbal remedies as well as false advertising laws by manufacturing and shipping their product from Pakistan. 

However, Pakistan now has the Electronic Transaction Ordinance (2002) which protect consumers in electronic commercial transactions, such as buying poison from Pakistan. More interestingly, there is the 2007 Electronic Crime Ordinance which has this interesting clause, potentially punishable by death:

17. Cyber terrorism. -

a. Any person, group or organization who, with terroristic intent utilizes, accesses or causes to be accessed a computer or computer network or electronic system or electronic device or by any available means, and thereby knowingly engages in or attempts to engage in a terroristic act commits the offence of cyber terrorism.

Explanation1: For the purposes of this section the expression “terroristic intent” means to act with the purpose to alarm, frighten, disrupt, harm, damage, or carry out an act of violence against any segment of the population, the Government or entity associated therewith...."

Do you think that selling Strychnine to Parkinson's patients over the Internet could be interpreted as "Intent to harm, damage or carry an act of violence against a segment of the population..." (what we in America would call a hate crime)?  I think it could be.  

Interesting stuff, eh? 

Now: Of the sites I investigated (and I have to admit that a few, such as Inisitab, and Abdotab were late additions to the party) the vast majority claimed to be run our of Norway, from this address:

Oslo Health Solutions

Oslo Health Solutions
Suite 329
Youngstorget
NO-0028 Olso
Norway

There are a few exceptions, Some had no address whatsoever, but when you click on the "order now" , button, it comes up as Oslo Health Solutions. These included Raynotab, Guillatab, Clearotab,

...and a few products seemed to be run out of the UK, from corporations (...or are they? "Inc" is not a UK corporation suffix  "Ltd" or "plc" are the norm over there.  ...Hmmmm.)  supposedly operating over there.  Note the addresses are all exactly the same.

Vertigo Tab Inc
Suite 10 & 11
Siddeley House
50 Canbury Park Road
Kingston Upon Thames
Surrey - KT2 6LX
UK

Anemia Tab Inc
Suite 10 & 11
Siddeley House
50 Canbury Park Road
Kingston Upon Thames
Surrey - KT2 6LX
UK

Psoriasis Tab Inc
Suite 10 & 11
Siddeley House
50 Canbury Park Road
Kingston Upon Thames
Surrey - KT2 6LX
UK

Vitiligo Tab was the one which had buried its tracks particularly well. No address, no telltale "Oslo Health Solutions" banner on the order form. The Web site was registered to a "Charls Dickens" (sic)  of

Berkeley Square House,
W1J 6BD
London,  W1J 6BD
United Kingdom

In the UK, companies making false claims over the Internet are regulated by  The Trading Standards Institute.  Vitigilo tab is claiming that "Vitiligo Tab is our 100% guaranteed and clinically proven permanent cure for Vitiligo" (my emphasis). Psoriasis Tab and Vertigo Tab also claim a "100% cure", whereas Anemia Tab claims a "completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for Anemia".  Are these false claims?  I dunno, but I think they should be investigated by the appropriate parties.

So what you do is this: You go to their site and enter the postcode

for the guys against whom you wish to complain, which is KT2 6LX  or W1J 6BD (for Charls Dickens) and you follow the instructions from there.

Little people can fight back, you know. We just need to get the right muscle on our side.

Oslo Health Solutions: Preying On The Sick Part II

This is Part II of my little exploration of a unscrupulous company who takes advantage of sick people by selling them herbal remedies under false pretenses. In part I, I told you about the products sold by Oslo Health Solutions, which is by far the worst offender out there that I have found. In Part II, I am sticking with Oslo Health Solutions, and concentrating on the ingredients they claim are beneficial for a very wide variety of serious ailments. I am uncovering new and interesting information every day, none of it good.

 I promised you an analysis of the formulations that Oslo Health Solutions (OHS) purport to use for the various ailments that they purport to treat.  I performed this exercise a couple of years ago on the Syrotab formulation, what I am now calling "Formulation 1" herein, as it is touted not only for the "guaranteed treatment of Syringomelia" (a condition which cause hideous pain, disablement and eventual death), but as a "guaranteed treatment" for several conditions, including Post-Polio syndrome (potentially crippling), Osteomyelitis (potentially fatal) , Peripheral Neuropathy (often treatable if the underlying cause is located) and Muscular Dystrophy (both crippling AND fatal).  My little analysis at the time was done for fun, and it was amusing-if-a-little-scary then. Looking back and knowing what  I now know, Formulation 1

The main ingredients are listed as

Magnesium Murakab
Zinc Murakab
Berberis aristate
Ext Egg Shell Calcium
Sulphur
Substituted olive Oil

The exact proportion of each ingredient has been deliberately kept secret to avoid imitations of our confidential formula.

LETS BREAK THIS DOWN, SHALL WE?

Magnesium Murakab, Zinc Murakab
I could not find any information on these specific formulations of magnesium and zinc. So I looked up the work “Murakab”:

It is an Islamic concept meaning “complex ignorance” See the following explanation:

The classical ulama of Islam divided ignorance into two parts; namely; simple (basiit) ignorance and complex (murakab) ignorance. In simple ignorance one knows that one does not know whereas in complex ignorance one does not know that one does not know. Often people who do not have book knowledge, i.e., those who did not have the chance to study at universities are characterized by simple ignorance. This type of ignorance is not as deadly as complex ignorance since one does not have the arrogance and the pride that often accompanies the thought of considering oneself ’educated’.

Hmmm. Something smelled bad. So I kept looking down the ingredients list:

Berberis aristate Ext: OK this is actually something, though misspelled.  It is extract from the plant Berberis Aristata, English name Tree Tumeric, the root of which has antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties. (To my eyes, They will need all the anti-inflammatory properties they can get to counterbalance that "Murakab" jab.)

Egg Shell Calcium (quoi? I know eggshells won't do any harm if ground up finely, but I don't think the type of calcium found in eggshells is can be absorbed by humans)

Sulphur:  (in what form? and some people are allergic to sulphur -where's the warning?)

Substituted olive Oil: Substituted for what? Or more interestingly; what was substituted for olive oil?

My summary at the time:

Should I ever get the urge to sprinkle my breakfast eggs with tree tumeric, sulphur and complex ignorance, then eat them shells and all, I will let you guys know how I get on. In the meantime,. I think that anyone with Syringomyelia or other conditions should save their money to apply to real medical expenses.

("Had the effectiveness of Syrotab not been proven beyond any doubt, it would not be "possible for us to make such a bold claim")

Formulation 2:

The main ingredients, according to Oslo Health Solutions are:

Berberis aristata D.C Ext.
Melia azadirachta Linn Seed
Raphanus satirus Linn
Melia azadirachta Bark
Red earth
Sulphur (purified)
Allium ascalonicum seed

These ingredients, presumably in different combinations (if one is to be kind) are "guaranteed" by OHS to treat the following

Muscular Fasciculation

Kugelberg Welander Syndrome 

Pseudotumor Cerebri

Ascites

Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Teething Troubles (Yes. They say you should give it to babies!)

Spasmodic Torticollis

Enlarged Tonsils

Arachnoid Cysts

Multiple System Atrophy

Ameloblastoma

Wiskott Aldrich Syndrome

Horner's Syndrome

Chordoma

Benign Essential Tremor

Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Benign Essential Blepharospasm

Cronkhite-Canada Syndrome

Megaloblastic Anemia

Really.

So I did a little research on each of these ingredients:

Berberis aristata D.C Ext.: Here again is our friend the Tree turmeric, spelled correctly this time.

Melia Azadirachta Linn Seed: Azadirachata Indica is an evergreen tree native to India and the region. It is used for medicinal purposes: The bark is used for fever, nausea and skin diseases. The leaves are used for skin diseases -but applied topically.

I couldn't figure out what the seed oil (I presume this is what Linn Seed means) is used for specifically.

Raphanus satirus Linn: I think this might actually refer to Raphanus Sativus Linn, which is the Chinese radish. Its seeds are used for natural medicine in diuretics and laxatives and also to help naso-pharyngeal affections and stomach troubles

Melia azadirachta Bark: Bark from the Azadirachata Indica tree as mentioned previously. The bark is used for fever, nausea and skin diseases.

Red Earth: Um. I think as the description suggests, this is earth (dirt) that is red, from India. It is seems to be used in face packs and the like. I don't know why anyone would eat it, but maybe there is a good reason.

Sulphur (purified): Used in Indian homeopathic medicine. I am not sure what for, exactly

Allium ascalonicum seed: Allium ascalonicum is the common shallot. Shallots appear to contain more flavonoids and phenols than other members of the onion family.

While researching these ingredients, I found them listed in the same order, with the same misspellings, on a site that appears to have nothing (publically) to do with Oslo Health Solutions.

Check out the information for Pileen, a natural remedy for hemmorhoids, which is marketed and sold by Ark Corporation (Rawalpindi, Pakistan)

Some text from their site:

PILEEN is an effective herbal remedy for treatment of piles or haemorrhoids. It stops bleeding of haemorrhoids and relieves pain and inflamation. Pileen also removes the constipation, which is one of the main cuases of piles. Pileen is equally effective for both (internal and extrenal) forms of piles.

WHAT IS PILES?
Piles, also known as haemorrhoids, are swollen blood vessels in the back passage. There are two types of piles - internal or external: Internal piles are the most common form of the condition and appear as bright red shiny swellings inside the anal canal, covered in the thin, moist lining of the rectum. External piles are swollen veins close to the anal opening, covered in a layer of skin with a dark red or dusky purple appearance and can resemble bunches of grapes.The main cuases of piles are constipation (for a long period) and use of too much chillies and spices.

To prevent piles :

• Ensure that there is adequate roughage (bran, whole grains, green vegetable, and fruits) in your diet.
• Avoid alcohol, tea, coffee and very spicy food
• Drink at least 8 glasses of water daily preferably non-refrigerated.
• If your life style is sedentary include some exercises in your daily routine.
• Get yourself treated for any condition that is causing you to strain such as chronic cough
• Attend to nature's call daily and do not postpone the urge to defecate, but do not sit for too long in the toilet.
• Maintain god hygiene and keep the anal area dry learn to relax mentally and regularize your life style
• Isabghol husk can be taken as a bulk forming laxative.

DOSAGE:
Two tablets thrice a day with water.

INGREDIENTS:
Berberis Aristata ,Melia Azedarch, Linn Seed, Raphanus Satirus, Red Earth, Purified Sulphur, Allium Ascaionicum Seed.

Just a side-by-side look at the ingredients again: Pileen above, multiple OHS products below

Berberis aristata D.C Ext.
Melia azadirachta Linn Seed
Raphanus satirus Linn
Melia azadirachta Bark
Red earth
Sulphur (purified)
Allium ascalonicum seed

Fascinating, huh?

The funniest fact is this:  OSH do sell a product called Hemorotab, but the ingredients are completely different than the hemmorhoid treatment they apparently re-label and sell to treat MSA and other serious health conditions! Mad, eh? Here is the list for Hemorotab (Hemorotab! I ask you?! Sweet mother of God! I couldn't MAKE this stuff up!)

(The main ingredients of Hemorotab tablets are: Nuqra flakes , Ruby triturated, Turquoise, Agate green, Bombyx mori, Elettaria cardamomum, Conucilien, Corallium rubrum, Coral, Sea coconut, Ambra grasea, Aquilaria ovata, Delphinium denudatum, Doronicum hookeri, Lapis lazuli, Myristica indica, Pearls triturated, Vateria indica, zehar mohra, Crocus sativus

Hmmmm ...rather heavy on the precious and semi-precious stones, this one. Who knew hemmorhoids were so status-conscious?)

...but I digress...

On to Formulation 3...

This one is supposedly for the treatment of Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), which is a bleeding condition in which the blood doesn’t clot as it should due to a low platelet count. OHS's "treatment" for this includes the following.

Ammonium Chloride
Potassium Nitrate
Cinnamomum
Tamala
Rheum Emodi, Wall
Base Q . S

My analysis:

Ammonium Chloride: Salt of Ammonia. Its expectorant action is caused by irritative action on the bronchial mucosa. This causes the production of excess respiratory tract fluid which presumably is easier to cough up. I'm not sure what benefit this woudl have to bleeding or platelets, exactly.

Ammonium salts are an irritant to the gastric mucosa and may induce nausea and vomiting.  (Again, not getting the platelet connection here)

Potassium Nitrate: Salt Peter. A popular misconception was that potassium nitrate caused impotence and it used to be added to food in all-male institutions. This myth has been debunked. However, potassium nitrate and other nitrates do successfully combat high blood pressure and are used medically to relieve angina.  (Fair enough -not that I think ITP causes either of these problems.)  Oh and BTW:   Platelets, anyone?

Cinnamomum Tamala: Indian Bay leaf. It is mostly used as a seasoning, but is reputed to help colic, diarrhoea, and "rheumatism". It is also said to reduce blood sugar.

Rheum Emodi, Wall: Reported to be useful in biliousness, chronic bronchitis, asthma, sore eyes and bruises.(OK! Maybe this one is for the platelets!)

Base Q . S: I could only find references to this as a listed ingredient in some shampoo that is supposed to prevent hair loss...

Formulation 4.

For Peptic Ulcer Disease,  -the thing that struck me -just looking down this list, was that there is a lot of strong, fragrant substances being sold to soothe a peptic ulcer? Logically, that doesn't compute...

Camphor: Camphor is used in several cough preparations such as Vicks and Buckley's as a cough suppressant and topical analgesic

Menthol: Menthol has analgesic properties that are mediated through a selective activation of κ-opioid receptors. Menthol also enhances the efficacy of ibuprofen in topical applications via vasodilation, which reduces skin barrier function

Oleum anisi: Oil of Anise is employed as an aromatic carminative to relieve flatulence. The oil may be administered on sugar or as Spiritus or Elixir Anisi. It is a mild expectorant, and is an ingredient of simple cough lozenges, often in combination with liquorice

Oleum carvi: Caraway Oil is used to impart flavor to medicines, and to correct their nauseating and griping effects

Oleum eucalypti: The oil of eucalyptus (which is chiefly eucalyptol) and eucalyptol, in small doses, are gentle stimulants; in large doses, they occasion irritation of the throat and fauces, with increased flow of saliva; cephalagia, with extreme fatigue; frequency of the pulse; increased temperature; diminution of vascular tension; gastric irritability, and, not unfrequently, diarrhoea, accelerated respiration, the peculiar odor of the oil being exhaled with the breath; and increase of the urinary excretion

Oleum pine: Pine Oil. It is given internally as a disinfectant and expectorant,

Thymol: Thyme extract. Recent medical research on rats concludes that "Thyme extract had relaxing effects on organs possessing β₂-receptors (uterus and trachea). Thymol has GABAergic properties via a mechanism of action similar to the anaesthetic propofol. Though much less potent, thymol may possess abuse potential (Nice!).

Tincture zingiber: Essence of Ginger  used to calm the stomach and also to treat pneumonia, acute and sub-acute dysentery

Formulation 5

This is purportedly for the treatment of Parkinson's Disease, Soft Tissue Sarcomas and Atrial Fibrillation. It was when I started to go through this particular list that I started to feel like I had stepped into the twilight zone. The lady from whom we bought our house had Parkinson's, and I saw a tiny piece of that that did to her. It is a horrible disease (most of the diseases OHS claim to treat are horrible. This seems to be deliberate). To think that these people are selling the list below (read it) as a "completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal supplement that helps patients overcome the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease" just makes me want to vomit. Apparently, if I took some parkotab, I might do just that! Read on if you have the stomach for it:

Salvia Haematodes: (from a PubMed article) The aqueous extract of the root of Salvia haematodes has been investigated for its pharmacological actions on the cardiovascular and central nervous system. It was found to possess significant cardiotonic and anticonvulsant activities.

Centauria Behan: Centaurea Behen is the correct spelling. A white flower of the knapweed family. Said to be tonic.

Orchis Mascula: The ground-up root (called Salep) is very nutritive, astringent, expectorant and demulcent. It has been used as a diet of special value for children and convalescents,

Delphinium Denudatum: According to an Indian Medical site: "It helps in reducing the inflammation and also helps in relieving pain. It helps in curbing the infection happening in the body and wounds. It is a good nervine tonic and makes the nervous system strong. It improves digestion and normalizes the peristaltic movements in the gut. It stimulates heart for normal functioning and also helps in purifying the infected blood. It checks the respiratory system by expelling out the extra mucus from it. It is a good aphrodisiac agent and also normalizes the menstrual cycle". (I bet the men with Parkinson's will be pleased to have their cycles regulated. Quick! Call Michael J. Fox!)

Myristica Frargrans: Duplicate entry -a mispelling of Myristica Fragrans (i.e. nutmeg) -see below for details

Cinnamonum Cassia: "Chinese cinnamon", a key ingredient in 5 spice seasoning, but has no medical properties that I could find.

Doronicum Pardalia: Thanks to the misspelling of "Doronicum Pardalis" I found this little gem, from our friends at Ark Corporation in Pakistan.

Aren't misspellings fun?!

Doronicum Pardalis: -no such thing. Doronicum is a plant called leopard's bane and Pardalis is a descriptive word meaning well... leopard! (...so that means...what? leopard's leopard's bane? Leopards bane squared? The mind boggles...)

Zingiber Officinale: Common Ginger. It is often used as a natural remedy for stomach upset, motion sickness, and nausea

Asparagus Racemosus: A plant native to India. It is sometimes used to treat dyspepsia.

Paeonia Emodi: The Himalayan Peony. Not only is it purty,

it actually has a significant effect on the Central Nervous System.  Read this.

I don't know if this is necessarily a beneficial effect for Parkinson's sufferers, however...

Serpentine Bezoar:  It sounds like something out of Harry Potter, right? And it almost is. A bezoar is a mass found trapped in the digestive tract of an animal. A hairball is the most common kind (Yum!).

I couldn't find much information about serpetine beozar (outside of references on various OHS sites). I imagine most of the big ones would end up in a serpentine shape (think about it), as opposed to a having been taken from a snake's digestive tract, although maybe that's what they mean. Either way, I am not impressed.

In the middle ages, Beozars were highly prized and considered to be an antidote to any poison; -which theoretically makes it a good thing to put in this particular formulation,  given some of the other ingredients therein (see further down the list). But that myth was debunked in 1575.

Pearl Oster: This may refer to the remains of this woman (at this point, I wouldn't put anything past Oslo Health Solutions!)

...or it could mean "Pearl Oyster". This in turn, could either mean pearl oyster mushrooms, or it could refer to actual ground-up pearls (less likely).

Caryophilus Aromaticus, which are cloves

Kushta Qalee: I can't quite figure this one out. It appears to be some kind of substance popular for male performance improvement, It is used in several such products including  Ejacutab!  (hey look! There's the laughing couple again!)

Stychnos Nuxvomica: Misspelled. This refers to Strychnos Nux-Vomica, which is a product of the Strychnine tree. (Yes, really! Nux Vomica = poision nut!) According to the Internet, It can actually be used to treat flu, fatigue, hangovers, stress, headache and sleeplessness

...and to kill people, of course. Let's not forget that.

Asphaltum: No. This does not refer to ground-up road. Not quite, anyway. Asphaltum does occur naturally and is sold in India as Shilajit (which means destroyer of weakness in Sanskrit -love that!). According to a site I found "it works as a powerful anti oxidant thereby delaying aging. It is an effective remedy in arthritic conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, gout and other joint related problems and back pain".

Amber Gris: Ambergris occurs as a biliary secretian of the intetines of the Sperm whale and can be found floating upon the sea, or in the sand near the coast . Ambergris has been mostly known for its use in creating perfume and fragrance much like musk. During the Middle Ages, Europeans used ambergris as a medication for headaches, colds, epilepsy and other ailments

Bambusa Arundinacea: Thorny Bamboo. It is used as an aphrodisiac, diuretic, demulcent, tonic, pectoral, stimulant, and antifertility treatment.

Myristica Fragrans: Nutmeg! (known as Jaiphal in India) Jaiphal is a aromatic, carminative, hallucinogenic, stimulant that is considered effective in digestive disorder, de-hydration & skin disorders.

I wanted to continue this exercise. There are at least 8 other formulations that I have not covered. But honestly, I am feeling quite ill right now. I think If before, anyone might have thought there may be something to the claims of Oslo Health Solutions, the idea of giving whale bile, posion, hairballs and unstudied anti-convulsants to someone with Parkinson's disease will make them think again.

There will be a Part III in this series, because I still have some questions which I think are relevant. However, in the meantime, here is a list of even more Oslo Health Solutions products I have found while researching this piece.

Hernotab, Hemotab, Hemnotab, Hemorotab, Ejacutab, Phyratab, Fibritab

Is there no end? ...

Oslo Health Solutions: Preying On The Sick Part I

Every now-and-again, on a support board or some other website, I will run across a person who is asking about a herbal remedy they found on the Internet. Had we heard of it?  Has anyone tried it? Does it work? What are the side effects? Is the money-back guarantee for real?  Now, it very easy for a well person in the cold light of day to spout hackneyed phrases like "stay away from miracle cures" and "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is". Those who are well and relatively pain-free don't understand the desperation some of us with chronic conditions (and our families) can go through when faced with an incurable condition and very little help. It is easy for the well to warn that cross-border herbal remedies are not regulated and that we have no clue what we might be getting.

Yes, it is easy to say if you are well.

However,  if you are looking down both barrels of a chronically painful and potentially disabling condition like Syringomyelia, for yourself or your child (or your  mother /aunt /brother /grandchild /father /sister /uncle /niece /nephew... etc) and it is three in the morning and you can't sleep for pain and worry, can't find a specialist who knows about the condition within 300 miles and then maybe some of these solutions may seem like they are worth a try.  How many among us would not spend a hundred dollars to try and help a loved one?   

Sick people and their families can be easy pickings for unscrupulous product developers and sales people.  I remember a couple of years ago, -in Feb '07 actually, I came across a product called Syrotab  mentioned on a message board. The product claimed that  “Syrotab is a completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for Syringomyelia.

An admitted bold claim, but they say they can back it up.

If you look at the web site for Syrotab, it looks legit. 

 

The site is slick and professional looking, with a picture of a beauitful but rather vacant-looking bi-racial woman, flanked by a couple of handsome guys in the background; one serious and one trying to look sincere. The site has a short but accurate description of what Syringomyelia entails and then they get to their -self-acknowledged "bold" claims of treatment (not cure!) within a few weeks. They back up these claims with promises of clinical trials and money-back guarantees up the wazoo.

Back in February '07, I did some analysis on Syrotab.  I checked their site to try and find details on their clinical trial results. but the link said it is "coming soon"  For a laugh, I checked again today. Guess what?  It is still  "coming soon"!  Shocker!   Did you ever hear the Jamaican expression "Soon Come" (i.e. never)?   Yep. It's the same deal.

Back in '07, I cut and pasted some text from their website:

“Syrotab is a completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for Syringomyelia.

It consists of a formulation consisting of purely natural ingredients based on the Unani (Greek) system of herbal medicine blended together in a specific proportion to fight and treat Syringomyelia effectively.

Thousands of patients have been successfully treated with Syrotab over the past few years. Syrotab is a completely outstanding product and there is absolutely no alternative to its unique formula. Had the effectiveness of Syrotab not been proven beyond any doubt, it would not be possible for us to make such a bold claim.

The main ingredients of Syrotab tablets are:
Magnesium Murakab
Zinc Murakab
Berberis aristate Ext
Egg Shell Calcium
Sulphur
Substituted olive Oil

The exact proportion of each ingredient has been deliberately kept secret to avoid imitations of our confidential formula.
Treatment with Syrotab is very rapid obvious results can be noticed within 40 days of use. A complete course of treatment lasts three months.

Syrotab is taken in an oral pill form and the normal dosage is two tablets twice a day, mornings and evenings. There are absolutely no side effects and the treatment is safe and sold over the counter.

Syrotab comes for a fixed price of $230 for a one month supply….”  Update: the price is now $79.99.  Bargain!     ...NOT!

I researched some of the ingredients mentioned, which was an education in itself.  I will get into all of that in part two of this piece.

When researching these ingredients, I came across something very interesting.  Amylotab! Here again, was my friend,. the vacant biracial woman.

...and here is the text from the "about Amylotab" page...

 
Amylotab is a completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for Cutaneous Amyloidosis.

It consists of a formulation consisting of purely natural ingredients based on the Unani (Greek) system of herbal medicine blended together in a specific proportion to fight and treat Cutaneous Amyloidosis effectively.

Thousands of patients have been successfully treated with Amylotab over the past few years. Amylotab is a completely outstanding product and there is absolutely no alternative to its unique formula. Had the effectiveness of Amylotab not been proven beyond any doubt, it would not be possible for us to make such a bold claim.

The main ingredients of Amylotab tablets are:

Magnesium Murakab
Zinc Murakab
Berberis aristate Ext
Egg Shell Calcium
Sulphur
Substituted olive Oil

The exact proportion of each ingredient has been deliberately kept secret to avoid imitations of our confidential formula.

Treatment with Amylotab is very rapid obvious results can be noticed within 2 months (60 days) of use. A complete course of treatment lasts four months.

Amylotab is taken in an oral pill form and the normal dosage is two tablets twice a day, mornings and evenings. There are absolutely no side effects and the treatment is safe and sold over the counter.

Amylotab comes for a fixed price of $290 for a one month… (now a virtual bargain at $79.99!)

I saw a theme emerging. Something smelled very fishy indeed.  I did some more searching and found  Osteotab

It was probably a mistake on my part. But at that point I left the whole business behind me, thinking it was small scale and well, that it wasn't really my problem. Surely some other people would come along and blow the whistle on these guys?

Then yesterday, when I got started again on the theme of false miracle cures for a completely unrelated reason, I found all these sites still happily operating. I also found this!

 

 

Oh no, they Di-n't!!      (Oh yes. They did!)

...and after that, I went completely mad on Google using all sorts of combinations of keywords and search strings. I hit the motherlode!  I have summarized and collated the data.  The list is at the end of this piece with links and all that good stuff.  If you check it out, you will see the evidence is indisputable: Oslo Health Solutions are total rip-off artists.  What makes me so mad is the scale of the operation, as well as the people targeted. Most of the conditions they claim to "treat" are chronic and incurable. many cause serious pain, disability or death.  Talk about preying on the desperate!

Even worse, some of the conditions they claim to "treat" are progressive, dangerous, cancerous  or pre-cancerous. I don't think anyone would be stupid or desperate enough to try one of these treatments in lieu of real medical help. At least I hope not! But then again, there may be desperate people out there with no insurance, who spend what little money they may have on acquiring false hope.

There are two primary templates used on these sites. The most-used by far is the vacant woman one as show previously.  

However there is another template, even more slick,  which I have dubbed the "laughing couple"  (aren't they lovely?)  template. 

 

Although this site looks completely different to the others mentioned so far, read the text: 

Peritab is a completely guaranteed and clinically proven herbal treatment for Peripheral Neuropathy.

It consists of a formulation consisting of purely natural ingredients based on the Unani (Greek) system of herbal medicine blended together in a specific proportion to fight and treat Peripheral Neuropathy effectively.

Thousands of patients have been successfully treated with Peritab over the past few years. Peritab is a completely outstanding product and there is absolutely no alternative to its unique formula. Had the effectiveness of Peritab not been proven beyond any doubt, it would not be possible for us to make such a bold claim.

The main ingredients of Peritab tablets are:

Magnesium Murakab
Zinc Murakab
Berberis aristate Ext
Egg Shell Calcium
Sulphur Substituted olive Oil

The exact proportion of each ingredient has been deliberately kept secret to avoid imitations of our confidential formula.

Treatment with Peritab is very rapid. Obvious results can be noticed within one month of use. A complete course of treatment lasts two months.

Peritab is taken in an oral pill form and the normal dosage is two tablets twice a day, mornings and evenings. There are absolutely no side effects and the treatment is safe and sold over the counter.

Peritab comes for a fixed price of $180.00 for a two months supply (240 Tablets) and can be ordered from our website. We do not charge any shipping price.

Treatment with Peritab is fully guaranteed. We are so confidant about the effectiveness of Peritab, that in the rare case you remain unsatisfied with the improvement in your condition, you may simply return the empty packaging along with the original receipt and claim a refund of the amount you paid us. The guarantee is valid for 120 days from the date of purchase. Since all payments are made via credit card directly to CCNOW (our credit card processing company), your money is completely safe. CCNOW will ensure that we honor all claims for refund. The only condition is that you have to be persistent in your treatment with Peritab for a complete course of the treatment. Skipping pills or being irregular will only delay the treatment.

If it sounds familiar, it is. It is exactly the same wording as for Syrotab, Amyltab, Osteotab, MD-Tab and several others, right down to the ingredients list. A straight cut-and paste job, with just  product name and pricing changed.

 

Proof of Cut and Paste: Check out the title of this "Thyrotab" about page. They forgot to rename it from "Psoriasis Tab"!

Although there is no company name or address listed on the Peritab site that I could find, the "Order Now" button gives it away

CCNow is an authorized retailer for OSLO HEALTH SOLUTIONS

Bastards.

Just to clarify, I think CCNOW is a legit operation, however they don't issue refunds without their client's approval. Their client is Oslo Health Solutions,-not the consumer.  

Do Oslo Health Solutions back up their promises?  Well, this person will never know. OHS never sent the Ptosotab that was paid for.

 

The next person actually received some bottles of pills (I must admit I was surprised to see this) but returned them and got no refund (quelle surprise!).

 

Another report; -this time for Sarcotab:

But what about the clinical research, I hear you ask?  They say there is some.

I didn't check absolutely every site for clinical research, and most of the ones I did check, had the very familiar "will be posted soon" message.  However, Vitiligo Tab (Vitiligo Tab is our 100% guaranteed and clinically proven permanent cure for Vitiligo.) has a research report attributed to Gaurang Clinic and Center for Ayurvedic research. 

I tried to cross reference this by searching Guarang's own site for the paper -I thought they would have it listed among their 49 other reports, but it wasn't. Curious.

Then I read the report. It seemed a bit low on actual research to my somewhat-trained eyes. There is a of information about Vitiglio itself , and some interesting if rather vague claims made.  But the information on the study itself and the findings thereof seemed somewhat hazy. They look great at first blush, but there were some things that seemed a little ...off.  First off, the study was not double-blind. There was no placebo.

Next, I noticed that the report uses a timeframe of 1996-2001. However, Vitiligo Tab -according to the site copyright- wasn't introduced until 2007. Was it in development for 19 years? (no wonder it is so expensive).  And finally, it doesn't say how the results were measured and over what timeframes.  It used terms like "cured" and "90% Improvement, but does not break it down into the different types or extent of vitiligo, which had been painstakingly outlined in the beginning of the paper. It looks like it does: -uses terms like "both sexes are equally affected by Vitiligo"  but it doesn't say how they genders are affected by Vitiligo Tab!  Hmmmm.  

 Psoriasis Tab was another with a research paper published from the same source (different attributed author) 

 

Again, if you read this paper, it is heavy on waffle and very light on actual research and concrete findings. And again, that paper it is not listed on Guarang's site.

I have mentioned a lot of "tabs" in this post, haven't I?  A lot of products called something-or-other-Tab that claims to treat  well... something-or-other?  Do you want to know how many I found?  Almost 50 (forgot to put clustotab on the list). And I don't think I have found them all. Some have been discontinued (like cardiotab) but have left footprints around the web, showing that they *used* to exist. Oslo Health Solution have around 284 domains registered, so I am guessing there are other um.. products out there that I haven't found yet. Anyhoo,  have a little look at this list. It is in alphabetical order. Check the links and see for yourself if you come to the same conclusion that I did. That these people -Oslo Health Systems (formerly Botanical Sources) are total rip-off artists.

Here it is: The Grand List of Oslo Health System's (and related sites) "completely guaranteed and clinically proven" herbal treatments

 This list was last updated on September 7th, 2009. There are almost 300 products on it.

Condition	Product
Abdominal Adhesions	http://abdotab.com/about_tab.html
Acanthosis Nigricans	http://nigratab.com/about_tab.html
Achlasia	http://achlotab.com/about_tab.html
Acrocyanosis	http://nansotab.com/about_tab.html
Acute Broncitis	http://bronchitab.com/about_tab.html
Adenopathy	http://adnotab.com/about_tab.html
Adhd	http://hypotab.com/about_tab.html
Adrenoleukodystrophy	http://adrenotab.com/about_tab.html
Agalactia (lack of breast milk)	http://milkotab.com/about_tab.html
Age-Related Macular Degeneration	http://sightotab.com/about_tab.html
Alkaptonuria (genetic)	Alkotab.com (site not available)
Allergic rhinitis	http://rhinotab.com/about_tab.html
Alopecia	http://alotab.com/about_tab.html
ameloblastoma	http://blastotab.com/about_tab.html
Amenorrhea	http://amenotab.com/about_tab.html
Amlyoidosis	http://amylotab.com/about_tab.html
Angina	http://angiotab.com/about_tab.html
Anginoedema	http://dematab.com/about.html
Angionma	http://hematab.com/about_tab.html
Anklyosing Spondylitis	http://spondotab.com/about_tab.html
Anorectal Fistula	http://anoratab.com/about_tab.html
Antiphospholipid Syndrome	http://phosphitab.com/about_tab.html
Aquagenic Pruritus	http://aquitab.com/about_tab.html
Arachnoid cysts	http://archotab.com/about_tab.html
Artery stenosis	http://stenotab.com/about_tab.html
Ascites	http://ascotab.com/about_tab.html
Asthma	http://asthotab.com/about_tab.html
Atelectasis	http://atelotab.com/about_tab.html
Atherosclerosis	http://atherotab.com/about_tab.html
Athlete's foot	http://athletab.com/about_tab.html
Atrial Fibrillation	http://fibritab.com/about_tab.html
Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia	http://hemotab.com/about_tab.html
Azospermia	http://spazotab.com/about_tab.html (Spazotab?  Seriously?)
Behcet's Syndrome	http://behcotab.com/about_tab.html
Bell's palsy	http://palsitab.com/about_tab.html
Benign essential blaphasospasm	http://prismatab.com/about_tab.html
Benign essential tremor	http://trematab.com/about_tab.html
Blepharitis	http://belphotab.com/about_tab.html
Blisters	http://blistotab.com/
Blood in the Semen	http://silutin.com/
Bone and Joint Tuberculosis	http://tb-tab.com/
Bone Degeneration	http://genratab.com/
Bowen's Disease	http://bonatab.com/
Bradycardia	http://bradnotab.com/
Breath odor	http://odutab.com/
Bromhidrosis	http://bromotab.com/
Bronchiectasis	http://bronchotab.com/
Bulima	http://balmotab.com/
Bullous pemphigoid	http://pemphitab.com/
Burning mouth syndrome	http://burnatab.com/
Canker sore	http://cankertab.com/
Carcinoid syndrome	http://carcotab.com/
Cardiomyopathy	http://cardio-tab.com/
Cataract	http://catratab.com/
Cellulitis	http://cellutab.com/
Cerebal palsy	http://palsotab.com/
CerebraxReiter's Syndrome	http://reitotab.com/
Cervical spine ( i.e. "neck"!)	http://vercitab.com/
Cervical Spondylosis	http://cervotab.com/
Cervicitis	http://cervitab.com/
Cheilitis	http://cheilotab.com/
Chloracne	http://chloratab.com/
Chondromalacia Patellae	http://chondrotab.com/
Chordoma	http://chordotab.com/
Cluster Headache	http://clustotab.com/
Condyloma	http://condytab.com/
Congestive Heart Failure	http://cardotab.com/
Constipation	http://constitab.com/
Cronkhite-Canada syndrome	http://cronkatab.com/
Cushings disease	http://hisnotab.com/
Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome	http://nausitab.com/
Dandruff	http://danditab.com/
Dacryocystitis	http://www.dacrotab.com/
Dark Circles	http://clearotab.com/
Deep Venous Thrombosis	http://thrombitab.com/
Delayed Ejaculation	http://ejacutab.com/
Dermatomyositis	http://myotab.com/
Diabetes Insipidus	http://insitab.com/
Diverticular Disease	http://divutab.com/
Drematofibroma	http://ridmotab.com/
Drooling	http://droolotab.com/
Drug Induced Liver Disease	http://livnitab.com/
Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding	http://uterotab.com/
Dyshidrosis	http://hidrotab.com/
Dyspepsia	http://dyspitab.com/
Eczema	http://eczitab.com/
Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS)	http://danlotab.com/
emphysema	http://emphotab.com/
Enlarged Tonsils	http://tonsotab.com/
Eosinophilia	http://eosiotab.com/
Epididymitis	http://epotab.com/
Erysipelas	http://eritab.com/
Erythema multiforme	http://emutab.com/
Erythroderma	http://erythrotab.com/
Erythromelalgia	http://meoltab.com/
Eyelid ptosis	http://ptosotab.com/
Fahr's Disease	http://fahrotab.com/
Fatty liver	http://faltotab.com/
Fibroadenoma of Breast	http://fibrotab.com/
Fibrocystic Breast Disease	http://fibrangin.com/
Flatulence	http://flatotab.com/
Folliculitis	http://follitab.com/
Formaldehyde poisoning	http://formatab.com/
Friedreich's Ataxia	http://ataxotab.com/
Frostbite	http://frostab.com/
Frozen shoulder	http://frozitab.com/
Ganglion cyst	http://ganglitab.com/
Gastritis	http://gastritab.com/
Gastro paresis	http://gastrotab.com/
Gilbert's Syndrome	http://gilbotab.com/
Gingivitis	http://gingotab.com/
Glaucoma	http://glaucotab.com/
Globus hystericus	http://globutab.com/
Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia	http://glossotab.com/
Gonorrhea	http://gonorrhotab.com/
Granuloma annulare	http://granutab.com/
Grave's disease	http://gravitab.com/
Grover's Disease	http://grovatab.com/
Guillain-Barre Syndrome	http://guillatab.com/
gynecomastia	http://gynetab.com/
Hand tremors	http://tremitab.com/
Hearing loss	http://sonitab.com/
Hemmorhoids (what, no Pileen?)	http://hemorotab.com/
Hepatic Hemangioma	http://hematab.com/
Hereditary Fructose Intolerence	http://fructotab.com/
Hernias	http://hernotab.com/
Herpes Simplex and Zoster	http://herpotab.com/
Herpetiform dermatitis	http://formotab.com/
Hidradenitis Suppurativa	http://hidratab.com/
Hives	http://hivotab.com/
Hookworm	http://hooknotab.com/
Horner's Syndrome	http://hornotab.com/
Hydrocele	http://hydrotab.com/
hydrocephalus	http://hydra-tab.com/
Hydronephrosis	http://nephratab.com/
Hyperhidrosis	http://anti-sweat.com/
Hypertension	http://nervotab.com/
Hypertensive retinopathy	http://retinotab.com/
Hypotension	http://pentotab.com/
Hysteria	http://hystotab.com/
Ichthyosis	http://ichnotab.com/
Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura	http://thorsatec.com/
Iga Nephropathy	http://iganotab.com/
Impetigo	http://impotab.com/
Inclusion body myositis (IBM)	http://mysotab.com/
Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy	http://choleotab.com/
Irritable Bowel Syndrome	http://irnatab.com/
Jock itch	http://tinnitab.com/
Keloids	http://kelotab.com/
Keratoacanthoma	http://keratotab.com/
Leg ulcers	http://lu-tab.com/
Lennox Gastaut Syndrome	http://lennotab.com/
Leukemia	http://leukotab.com/
Lichen Planus	http://lp-tab.com/
Lichen Simplex Chronicus	http://lichnotab.com/
Lipoma	http://limpotab.com/
Liver cirrhosis	http://cirrhotab.com/
Liver cyst	http://livotab.com/
Low back pain	http://back-tab.com/
Lymphadenitis	http://lymphatab.com/
Malabsorption	http://sorbotab.com/
Male Infertility	http://fertotab.com/
Mastitis	http://mastotab.com/
Melasma	http://melasma-tab.com/
Meniere's Disease	http://menrotab.com/
Menorrhagia	http://menotab.com/
Mental Retardation (Grrrrr)	http://retratab.com/
Molluscum Contagiosum	http://molsitab.com/
Motor Neuron Disease	http://mototab.com/
Multiple System Athrophy	http://atrophtab.com/
Muscular Dystrophy	http://md-tab.com/
Muscular Fasciculation	http://fascitab.com/
Myasthenia Gravis	http://mg-tab.com/
Myelitis	http://myelitotab.com/
Myocarditis	http://carditab.com/
Myopic degeneration	http://mydotab.com/
Narcolepsy	http://narcotab.com/
Nasal Polyps (Note Correct Spelling)	polytab (reassigned)
Nephrotic Syndrome	http://nephrotab.com/
neutropenia	http://neutrotab.com/
Obesity	http://obesotab.com/
Optic atrophy	http://atrotab.com/
Osteo necrosis	http://ostotab.com/
Osteomyelitis	http://osteotab.com/
Osteoporosis	http://ostatab.com/
Otitis media	http://otiotab.com/
Pancreatitis	http://pancrotab.com/
Papular Urtucaria	http://paputab.com/
Parkinsonism	http://parkotab.com/
Paroxysmal Tachycardia	http://tachratab.com/
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease	http://pelvotab.com/
Pemphigus	http://pemphotab.com/
penumothorax	http://pneumotab.com/
Peptic ulcer	http://peptotab.com/
Periodontitis	http://periotab.com/
Peripheral Neuropathy	http://peritab.com/
Peyronie's Disease	http://pyrotab.com/
Pharangitis	http://phyratab.com/
photodermatitis	http://dermotab.com/
Photosensitivity	http://seenotab.com/
Pick's Disease	http://picknotab.com/
Pityriasis Alba	http://albatab.com/
Pityriasis Roseca	http://rosotab.com/
Pneumothorax	http://pneumotab.com/
Polycystic Kidney Disease	http://cystotab.com/
Polycythemia Vera	http://pv-tab.com/
Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR)	http://myalatab.com/
Polyps	http://colotab.com/
Porphyria (All 6 kinds?)	phyrotab (not available)
Postconcussion syndrome	http://concutab.com/
Post-Polio Syndrome	http://pp-tab.com/
Post-traumatic Syndrome	http://traumatab.com/
Precocious puberty	http://pubotab.com/
Pre-eclampsia (pregnancy complication)	http://clamotab.com/
Premature Gray Hair	http://melatab.com/
Pressure Ulcer	http://press-tab.com/
Priapism	http://priatab.com/
Prickly heat	http://pricknotab.com/
Pruritus Ani	http://prurotab.com/
PseudoTumor Cerebri	http://pseudotab.com/
Raynauds Syndrome	http://raynotab.com/
Rectal prolapse	http://rectotab.com/
Renal Artery Stenosis	http://stenotab.com/
Renal Failure	http://renotab.com/
Restless Leg Syndrome	http://restotab.com/
Retinal Vein Occlusion	http://occlotab.com/
Retinitis Pigmentosa	http://retnitab.com/
Rheumatoid Arthritis	http://arthotab.com/
Ringworm	http://ringotab.com/
Rosacea	http://rosatab.com/
Salivary Duct Stones	http://ductotab.com/
Schistosomiasis	http://schistotab.com/
Schizophrenia (now that is dangerous!)	http://schizotab.com/
Sciatica	http://sciatab.com/
Scleroderma	http://sclerotab.com/
Sebaceous Cyst	http://sebatab.com/
Seborrheic Keratosis	http://sebotab.com/
Sensitive Teeth	http://sensotab.com/
Shingles	http://shingotab.com/
Sick Sinus Syndrome	http://sindrotab.com/
Sinus Tachycardia	http://tachytab.com/
Sjogrens Syndrome	http://sjorgotab.com/
Skin Abscess	http://absotab.com/
Skin Tags	http://tagnotab.com/
Soft Tissue Sarcomas	http://sarcotab.com/
Spasmodic Dysphonia	http://dysphotab.com/
Spider Veins	http://telitab.com/
Spinal Muscular Atrophy	http://muscotab.com/
Stroke (...REALLY?)	http://strototab.com/
Sunburn (check the privacy policy)	http://bursitab.com/
Syringomyelia	http://syrotab.com/
Teething troubles	http://dentotab.com/
Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome	http://tempotab.com/
Tetanus	http://tetnatab.com/
Thalassemia minor	http://thalsotab.com/
Thrombocythemia	http://thrombotab.com/
Thyroid Nodule	http://thyrotab.com/
Thyroiditis	http://thyrodin.com/
Tick Bite	http://ticknotab.com/
Tinea Versicolor	http://tineatab.com/
Tinnitus	http://tinnutab.com/
Trigenimenal Neuralgia	http://trignotab.com/
Trimethylaminuria	http://lamnitab.com/
Ulcerative Colitis	http://coliotab.com/
Undescended Testicle	http://testitab.com/
Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding	http://gastrobat.com/
Urethritis	http://urethrotab.com/
Urticaria Pigmentosa	http://carcitab.com/
Uterine Fibroids	http://utritab.com/
Uterine Prolapse	http://utrinotab.com/
Uveitis	http://uveinotab.com/
Vitreous Hemorrhage	http://vitrotab.com/
Vocal Cord Nodules	http://nodutab.com/
Vocal Cord Paralysis	http://vocotab.com/
Von Willebrand Disease	http://willetab.com/
Vulvovaginitis	http://vagnotab.com/
Vulvular Dystrophy	http://dystrotab.com/
Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia	http://waldotab.com/
Warts	http://wartotab.com/
Wilson's Disease	http://wilsotab.com/
Wiskott Aldrich Syndrome	http://wiskotab.com/

I have figured out that Oslo Health Solutions and their affiliates use around 13 different formulations to "treat"  over 60 different diverse ailments. I will discuss these in Part II.

Stay tuned.