I now take it as a compliment that I was once branded a snake oil salesman for breaking the HDSA's silence on the benefits of EPA.
The book referenced below is scientifically sound and well written. It is a must read for all interested in HD. I was surprised and delighted by what I learned.
Time permitting, I will provide more from this book --Jerry 10Jan2001.
From: "Fats that Heal Fats that Kill" by Udo Erasmus
Snake oil originally came from China, where it was used to alleviate inflammation and pain in rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis, and similar conditions. Chinese laborers on section gangs doing the grunt work involved in building the railroad tracks link North America coast to coast gave it to Europeans with joint pain (bursitis, arthritis). When rubbed on the skin above the pain, snake oil brought relief. the story goes. Patent medicine men ridiculed the claim.
1989, a nutrition-oriented medical doctor from California decided to find out what snake oil contains. He obtained a sample of the oil from San Francisco's Chinatown, had it analyzed, and found that it contains 75% unidentified carrier material, presumably for emulsifying the snake oil and helping'to transport it through the skin. It also contains camphor. The remaining 25% of the product is oil from Chinese water snakes, which contains 20% of the important omega 3 derivative eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) as well as 48% myristic acid , 10% stearic acid (18:0), 14% oleic acid, and 7% linoleic plus arachidonic acids. At 20% EPA, Chinese water snake is the richest known natural source of the parent of series 3 prostaglandins, which inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory series 2 prostaglandins. Like essential fatty acids and their other derivatives, EPA can be absorbed through our skin. Salmon oil, the next-best source of EPA, contains a maximum of only 18% EPA. Other fish oils contain less.
Not all snake oils contain 20% EPA. Rattlesnake oil contains only 8.5% EPA. Other snake oils have not been tested. Here is a worthwhile project for a budding young scientist, which could earn him/her a PhD, and start a new field of research: 'snakeoilology' - the scientific study of snake oils.
But the bottom line is that traditional snake oil is natural and therapeutic. The snake oil salesman is vindicated. The patent medicine salesman can expect a dimmer future.
Dr. Richard Kunin, the California doctor, submitted a report of his findings on the ingredients of snake oil to the New England Journal of Medicine. They were unwilling to publish it. Might it be more important to keep the image from being tarnished than to disseminate accurate information? If they were wrong about snake oil, what else should we question about the patent medicines-cum-drugs approach?
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