Posted on 08/21/2005 11:28:09 AM PDT by wagglebee
NEW YORK (Reuters) - He went to prison for fraud and was ordered by the U.S. government to stop touting health products on infomercials, but Kevin Trudeau's book "Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About" is a bestseller.
Trudeau, who for years sold snoring remedies and memory enhancers through long-format commercials dressed up as talk shows, says he is a consumer advocate battling the "unholy alliance" of drug companies and government regulators.
"It's all about money. The drug industry does not want people to get healthy," he says in a commercial for his book. Trudeau says he has sold about 4 million copies of the book in under a year, a huge amount for a self-published book marketed initially only through the Internet and television infomercials.
The book -- whose back cover says "Never get sick again!" and "Learn the specific natural cures for herpes, acid reflux, diabetes ... cancer ... and more!" -- has topped the Publishers Weekly nonfiction bestseller list for the past three weeks.
That attracted the attention of the New York Consumer Protection Board, which issued a warning this month that Trudeau promised cures he did not deliver.
"This book is exploiting and misleading people who are searching for cures to serious illnesses," said Teresa Santiago, who chairs the board. "From cover to cover, this book is a fraud," she said, adding that a doctor quoted apparently endorsing the book died in 2001.
Trudeau filed a lawsuit to stop the Consumer Protection Board from approaching TV stations to persuade them not to air his infomercials.
He says he recommends herbs, vitamins and other alternative treatments and, while urging people to consult doctors, lists cures such as shark cartilage for tumors and organic dark chocolate for stress.
"There are multiple ways to cure cancer without drugs and surgery," Trudeau told Reuters, adding that drug companies eschew natural products because they are unprofitable.
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine said it is spending over $120 million this year investigating everything from acupuncture to chamomile tea and the National Cancer Institute spends another $128 million.
'PARANOID FANTASY'
Stephen Barrett, a retired psychiatrist who runs a Web site called Quackwatch, described Trudeau's book as "a collection of false ideas" that included dangerous advice such as the claim that sunscreen can cause cancer so it should not be used.
"The danger of the book is it's an attempt to shape public opinion so people don't trust science-based healthcare."
Barrett said he too was suspicious about excessive profits in the drug industry, but said it was "paranoid fantasy" to suggest they would suppress or ignore cures.
"A lot of people are angry because drugs are so expensive," he said, explaining the book's draw. "He's promising magic."
In September, Trudeau agreed to pay $2 million to settle a U.S. Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over his claim that "Coral Calcium" could cure or prevent cancer but admitted no wrongdoing. Trudeau agreed to stop marketing health products but he was allowed to market books.
The FTC called the case an example to "other habitual false advertisers," prompting a lawsuit from Trudeau.
FTC attorney Laura Sullivan said the regulator was watching Trudeau carefully but had taken no action over the book.
Sullivan said the FTC sanction barring him from making infomercials for anything but books was "extraordinary" and followed a string of previous fraud charges that were settled.
Trudeau, 42, was jailed for 22 months in the early 1990s over credit card fraud -- something Trudeau dismissed as nothing more than a youthful indiscretion.
Reader reviews on Amazon.com revealed strong opinions, including complaints that his book refers readers to his Web site for more information.
Trudeau's site offers monthly membership at $9.95 and lifetime membership for $499. He said he charges because he takes no advertising and he spends $1.5 million a week on infomercials.
"I'm doing this virtually as a nonprofit," he said. "I'm not doing this for the money. It's a passion."
That's because the chemotherapy is a carefully balanced poisoning act.
Maybe you were meant to stay with us to keep us well informed and enlightened....
Actually chemo is usually targeted to fast growing cells which is what cancer is. It is also what hair follicles are and epithelial cells such as in the lining of the mouth are. They all are destroyed which is why chemo patients often go bald and have oral sores. It is true that the worst initial symptoms of cancer are actually side effects of chemo but it is a whole-body assault trying to kill the cancer. It often works which is more than you can say for some other therapies.
Even though I don't go for all of his claims, there is a lot of truth in his book that makes it a valuable addition to a home health library.
I get my shots, I go to doctors, I've been operated on in a hospital few times , but to PREVENT many ailments, if not most, find what nature provides.
Our medical system is NOT created for the purpose of prevention, and the doctor's will tell you that.
The homeopathic/naturalist - or whatever term - system has been around for thousands of years and if you realy study what is in these old-fashined remedies, you will find the exact same chemicals as are sold to you for hundreds of dollars! And the ones you have to buy from our pharmaceuticals are not "natural" - which I am beginning to agree with people like Trudeau - Natural IS Better.
After you explore all the rational approaches that a person is able to deal with, your statement is a rule I live by. When all is said and done, Let His will be done. Thank you.
FMCDH(BITS)
The only nation I know of that has AIDS in check is Castro's Cuba. Is that the ideal for which you strive?
You're right, it's not a stretch. It is a kook conspiracy theory.
Show me a pharmaceutical company with the cure for cancer, heart disease, and/or multiple sclerosis and I'll show you a business with income that will dwarf Bill Gates' wealth on an exponential level.
Yet somehow diseases which are far more contagious get stopped. You don't need to be in Cuba to stop a disease. AIDS is the only disease with a major political lobby - that's why it spreads unchecked.
I haven't read this book. However, one of the complaints I've heard is that it's loaded with hype, and little actual information. Someone I know who HAS read it suggested that a better title would be, "Natural Cures Not Even I Want You To Know About."
That said, there are some nice herbal remedies for many things that ail us, although I'm not at all certain any of them would cure cancer. But for headaches, upset stomachs, and the like, sometimes an herbal tea is better than an over the counter remedy, or a prescription. I use some of these myself with great results.
Even better than herbals, though (at least for me) are things like acupressure and certain kinds of physical routines like Tai Chi and QiGong (very gentle movements, nothing rigorous at all). I do not have cancer, but if someone is taking something like chemotherapy and/or radiation, some of these would help support the body during these difficult treatments. But cure? Nope. For that, you really need regular, standard medical treatment.
It's a great gimmick, though. No wonder he is a hit.
There is probably some truth to the book, but obviously he oversells his remedies. Unfortunately western medicine is more about covering up symptoms than eliminating the cause. But this guy doesn't have the answers and is not much higher up the ladder from snake oil salesmen.
I refuse to accept your postulate. A free country can stop AIDS if political correctness doesn't poison its policies.
That's absurd. We sure as hell haven't stopped hepatitis, herpes, syphilis, chlamydia or gonorrhea. So, once again, I ask you: how do you propose to do it without totalitarianism?
You keep saying it can be done. So let's see the plan.
The thing is, it should be obvious to anybody who listens to this guy, or reads anything he's written, that he's a total fraud. I cracked his book open at the bookstore and was disgusted with the obvious made-up crap that he was putting in there. I hate seeing charlatans succeed.
If you are able to locate any next of kin, hook them up with the plaintiffs' lawyers from the Vioxx suit.
If anyone can take Trudeau to the cleaners, they can.
"Okay, this guy might be a phony, but have you ever noticed that people who have cancer typically get most of the really bad symptoms after they start chemotherapy?"
Unless they don't start chemotherapy.
"The main difference is that chemotherapy has the decency to admit that it's poison. A lot of "all natural remedies" don't. (Remember, folks: just because something is natural doesn't mean it's good for you! Cyanide is all-natural too, y'know.)"
Strychnine, too.
Partially correct; while the goal is to "poison" cancer cells, it goes after the FASTEST GROWING cells (cancer cells), not necessarily the "weakest" cells. This also explains the side effects (hair falling out, nausea/stomatitis, decrease in blood counts), as hair follicles, blood, and cells in the GI tract also are amongst the fastest growing NORMAL cells in the body .
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