Natural Causes: Death, Lies and Politics in America’s Vitamin and Herbal Supplement Industry
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A riveting work of investigative journalism that charts the rise of the dietary supplement craze and reveals the dangerous—and sometimes deadly—side of these highly popular and completely unregulated products.
Over 60 percent of Americans buy and take herbal and dietary supplements for all sorts of reasons—to prevent illness (vitamin C), to ease depression (St. John’s wort), to aid weight loss (ephedra), to boost the memory (ginkgo biloba), and even to cure cancer (shark cartilage, bloodroot)—despite the fact that few of these “natural” supplements have been proven to be safe or effective. The vitamin and herbal supplement industry generates over $20 billion a year by selling products that promise to cure or fix, but are produced and marketed essentially without oversight. And while the media has been quick to sensationalize the benefits of supplements, few have taken a hard look at the dangers posed by many of the remedies flooding the market today. Award-winning journalist Dan Hurley breaks the silence for the first time in Natural Causes.
From the snake-oil salesmen of the early twentieth century, to rise of the health food movement in the sixties and seventies, Hurley charts the remarkable growth of an industry built largely on fraud, and reveals the backroom politics that led to the passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, which effectively freed the industry from FDA oversight. In unprecedented detail, he shows how supplement manufacturers have concealed the truth about dozens of untested treatments and the shocking rise in deaths, disfigurements, and life-threatening injuries caused by products deceptively promoted as “safe and natural.” Most importantly, he provides a telling look at why, in an age of unprecedented scientific advancement, we continue to buy and believe in remedies for which little evidence exists—and why the supplements we take to promote our health may be doing far more harm than good.
As Hurley shows, the dietary supplement craze may be one of the greatest swindles ever perpetrated on the American public—one that feeds billions of dollars each year into the pockets of lobbyists, politicians, and any charlatan who wants to slap a label on a bottle and tout it as the next big “natural cure.” Blending hard facts with spellbinding personal stories, Natural Causes is a must-read for anyone who has ever popped a multivitamin or an herb, and provides a hard-hitting, frightening look at a cultural trend that is out of control.
Publisher : Broadway; 1st edition (December 26, 2006)
Language : English
Hardcover : 336 pages
ISBN-10 : 0767920422
ISBN-13 : 978-0767920421
Item Weight : 1.3 pounds
Dimensions : 6.44 x 1.07 x 9.56 inches
8 reviews for Natural Causes: Death, Lies and Politics in America’s Vitamin and Herbal Supplement Industry
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fredyfrankle –
have no illusions evil knows no bounds
Just seeing a ton of mlm supplements in our pantry I thought to myself mlm`s are scams I wonder how bad the manufacturing really is.Reading the book gives the story to what actually is behind the marketing facade.Everything you know but dont want to believe about how evil people can really be is true.
Mike H –
Very useful
I spent a lot of money on vitamins and minerals before I red this book. It was an eye opener for me. Not so much that one shouldn’t take any supplements, but to seriously look at their effectiveness and possible side effects. Easy to read and lots of information about the supplement industry that you might not know.
Jennifer B –
Decent book
Slow to get into, but decent. Could have been condensed.
raphael a –
Original and most comprehensive review of alternative medicine industry. …
Original and most comprehensive review of the alternative medicine industry. Sadly prescient, as a NY Attorney General recently ordered two supplements off the shelf for not containing the advertised product.
R. Jacobs –
Thank you Dan on behalf of all the supplement victims too embarrassed to speak out.
Back in the 1950s I was discolored by a drug that contained silver. The condition is called argyria. In 1995 when I learned that silver was being sold as a “dietary supplement”, I asked salesmen for the evidence that led them to believe that it offered benefits and that it was safe and wouldn’t discolor people. They didn’t have any. One threatened me and admitted that there is no such evidence. I tried desperately to warn the public of the danger of ingesting silver and posted a web page for that purpose. Salesmen laughed and said I was comparing apples to oranges. Unfortunately, as I and all the scientists who were familiar with silver and argyria predicted, there are now many cases of argyria caused by silver supplements, one of which Dan mentions in his book. Many of the argyric people who speak to me tell me that they feel so stupid because they believed the salesmen who told them that their supplements were non-toxic. They believed them till they turned gray. If anything, Dan’s book is much too easy on the supplement industry. I just hope lots of people read it. If so, it may save many lives. My greatest fear is that there is something like cigarettes out there and that by the time we find out it will be too late for a lot of human beings.
DE-TOX –
Five Stars
Great book – must read for those who take or know people that take supplements
Ricardo Garza –
This book should be printed again.
Everyone should read this book, including the suckers who try to cure themselves with whatever Herbal Medication they learn about.
George M –
Sensationalism about a topic worthy of discussion
Mr Hurley took the absolute worst most horrific stories of complementary medicine and wrote a book to say “here see this stuff is dangerous”. His ignorance about how any of the substances work is quite clear especially with respect to Chinese medicine. I do know of several stories and my recollection doesn’t equate to what is written.If one hasn’t studied a language one cannot converse in it. Mr Hurley has no biochemistry, herbology or physiology background so how can he understand how supplements work in the body? He can write what he hears and draw conclusions, but that doesn’t make him an expert or even correct.There are definitely issues with DSHEA that need to be addressed. And no doubt there are tremendous quality issues with supplements. These do require an honest evaluation and proper regulation (not FDA). There are many awful products out there claiming to be ‘natural’. But there is also tremendous misuse which is a problem. Ephedra isn’t a problem. It has been used in Chinese Medicine for at least two thousand years successfully in the treatment of asthma. However Mr Hurley spins the story how bad Ma Huang is and that it should be off the market. Ridiculous. That equates to saying people drive abusively so let’s take cars off the market…Oh there are too many running injuries so let’s stop making sneakers.Unfortunately this book will cause people that do not truly understand the subject matter to believe Mr Hurley’s masterful spinning. Just like the believable bogus sales pitches about many nutritional supplements I advise folks not to believe excellent writing of this sensationlized novel.