William Radam well deserved the label of
“snake oil salesman”. He operated in the United States during the late 19th
century, selling his “Microbe Killer” for which he claimed amazing powers.
William Radam
For a pharmaceutical pioneer, Radam had an
unconventional background. He was a gardener who had observed that it didn’t
matter what weeds he treated with weedkiller, they all died. He reasoned that,
since all diseases were caused by “microbes”, if you could kill the microbes
you would cure the disease, whatever it was.
He therefore began to sell his miracle cure
with the recommendation to take: “A wineglassful after meals and at bedtime …
it will prevent and cure disease by destroying bacteria, the organic life that
causes fermentation and decay of the blood, the tissues, and the vital organs”.
By claiming to prevent disease as well as cure it, he therefore gained a
marketplace among healthy people as well as sick ones.
The diseases that Microbe Killer would
prevent and cure were many and various – everything from the common cold and
indigestion to syphilis and cancer. It proved to be highly popular, at three
dollars a gallon, and Radam eventually set up 17 factories in countries around
the world.
Needless to say, Radam was quick to rubbish
the medical profession, accusing them of hoodwinking the public by pretending
to know what caused a patient’s disease by diagnosing their symptoms. Clearly,
applying scientific rigour to the study of medicine was all nonsense – what was
needed was a hefty dose of Microbe Killer and nothing else!
Eventually, someone thought it would be a
good idea to apply scientific rigour to William’s marvellous medicine. It
turned out to be more than 99% water, with small quantities of sulphuric and
hydrochloric acids plus a dash of red wine to add taste and colour. At least
the former gardener did not think that weedkiller was an appropriate means of
dealing with microbes!
Unfortunately, some people today do not
seem to be any less gullible than the customers of William Radam. The market
for homeopathic remedies seems to be as buoyant as ever, despite the fact that
they contain nothing more in terms of clinically effective substances than did
Microbe Killer. No doubt there were people in Radam’s day who swore blind that
their regular dose of highly dilute and slightly acidic red wine was doing them
the power of good, just as devotees of homeopathy claim today. However, apart
from the beneficial placebo effect that comes from believing that something is
doing you good, the old and new snake oils are no more than that – snake oil!
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