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Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

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Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#61

Post by pinkgolem »

infecto wrote: post #34
nimbius wrote: post #10

I once read an inspiring post from a european user who explained why these companies generally succeed. Namely, that formal treatment and healthcare for the underlying condition targeted by the "wellness" product is prohibitively expensive for American customers, and so snakeoil thrives in the absence of legitimate medical science. you could literally bankrupt these companies in less than a fortnight with single paye…

As opposed to the massive Homeopathy industry in Germany? I think the overall healthcare industry plays a part but I would bet that this is more of a human problem and less of an "american healthcare system is bad" issue. Germany has a massive homeopathic industry including brick and mortar stores, you could go to Asia and look at traditional chinese medicine. People love the idea of easy fixes where you can drink so…

What? The homeopathic market in Germany is not what I would call big, it's well below 1% of the medical budget from all numbers I can find

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#62

Post by cmckn »

nimbius wrote: post #10

I once read an inspiring post from a european user who explained why these companies generally succeed. Namely, that formal treatment and healthcare for the underlying condition targeted by the "wellness" product is prohibitively expensive for American customers, and so snakeoil thrives in the absence of legitimate medical science. you could literally bankrupt these companies in less than a fortnight with single paye…

The Goop demographic can absolutely afford healthcare. People just prefer to throw money at their problems.

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#63

Post by colechristensen »

gumby wrote: post #48

Worth reading just to learn of the existence of "activated cashews" Our enzyme-rich, activated, and dehydrated cashews are a mineral-dense protein. Pure, alkaline water awakens the nuts' dormant properties, increasing digestibility and micronutrient, vitamin, and enzyme count. These raw, activated, bio-available nuts are a low-glycemic source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. As well as a product for sale at infowa…

Processing corn with alkali actually does improve its nutrition, maybe there’s something real going on here too? I wouldn’t automatically discount it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nixtamalization

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#64

Post by freedomben »

dboreham wrote: post #46
freedomben wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure I agree. For pretty much any supplement you want, you can find a good vendor that declares exactly what it is and provides third-party testing to confirm. If we get specific to the sort of combos like what are sold on Infowars, then yes that's a problem, especially that they can hide behind "proprietary formula" without having to disclose exactly what it is. But the supplement market is way bigger than j…

Stating accurately what's in it is not the same as it doing something beneficial when ingested.

Of course it's not. I don't see that I made any such claim. I'm not seeing where the complaint is defined anywhere above, so we may be talking about completely different things. GP specifically said that the current law is what has caused this problem, and I dispute that. I think there's more to it than that. That doesn't mean the law is perfect, but it doesn't mean it's completely responsible either.

The whole point of a "supplement" is that it's something you can normally get from diet and foods which are already available. If you create some new thing, under the current system you can't just call it a supplement and sell whatever it is, let alone sell it while making medical claims about it. If I buy a head of broccoli at the grocery store, should that need a label on it that describes health benefits when ingested, and this must be approved by the FDA? Or should it be enough that they're selling "broccoli" and it really is "broccoli"?

Also pretty much every supplement I've ever bought has text on the label like "These statements have not been reviewed/approved by the FDA," so there's a chunk of people

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#65

Post by kingkawn »

throwup238 wrote: post #59
Cheer2171 wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similar to Chesterton's fence, if you don't understand why the Goop brand has become incredibly popular for a particular demographic, maybe you aren't qualified to critique it. In short: It is supposed to sound exactly as ridiculous as you think it sounds. The Goop line most famously includes a candle that is marketed as smelling like the creator's vagina. It is supposed to generate outrage among people of your demog…

What is my "demographic", exactly? I'm not outraged, I'm amused... in a "bless your heart" kind of way.

The demographic who likes an opportunity to flag wave their superiority

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#66

Post by bombcar »

striking wrote: post #11
tomcar288 wrote: post #7

i'm not saying anything about the content of infowars but I can't believe how much money people will spend on "supplements", and pills and artificial products. and yet, somehow don't have any money for fruits, vegetables and beans. i can only imagine, there's something broken in how people are being raised.

You're underestimating how many people live in food deserts and basically don't have access to fresh food. That might seem like a nitpick against a larger argument, but I think it serves as a good example for why you need to take a close look at the environment that these people exist in as a whole, and that it likely goes beyond their innate habits or those of just their immediate family in childhood.

I wonder about that, even in the worst ghettos I've ever been in (I'm talking worse than bars on the door, but you have to ask the shopkeeper for what you want through a small hole and drawer) they've had some fruits and other forms of fresh-adjacent food.

I don't know how many people buy them, but a banana seems an easy snack.

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#67

Post by tnbp »

I'm a bit confused why the author is unfazed by "eleuthero root" and "cordyceps mushrooms", but puts "nascent iodine" in scare quotes.

Is it not nascent iodine? If no, then what is it? Oh no, it's nail clippings, isn't it. Gwyneth has tricked me yet again!

Edit: Thanks to everyone who replied--I learned something!

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#68

Post by anigbrowl »

striking wrote: post #11
tomcar288 wrote: post #7

i'm not saying anything about the content of infowars but I can't believe how much money people will spend on "supplements", and pills and artificial products. and yet, somehow don't have any money for fruits, vegetables and beans. i can only imagine, there's something broken in how people are being raised.

You're underestimating how many people live in food deserts and basically don't have access to fresh food. That might seem like a nitpick against a larger argument, but I think it serves as a good example for why you need to take a close look at the environment that these people exist in as a whole, and that it likely goes beyond their innate habits or those of just their immediate family in childhood.

The food desert concept is way overblown. They exist to some degree, but a lot of people choose to buy shit food when it would be equally convenient and affordable to buy something good. People walking around with 32oz (~1 liter) soda cups are not unable to find anything else to drink, they're sugar addicts.

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#69

Post by jwells89 »

striking wrote: post #11
tomcar288 wrote: post #7

i'm not saying anything about the content of infowars but I can't believe how much money people will spend on "supplements", and pills and artificial products. and yet, somehow don't have any money for fruits, vegetables and beans. i can only imagine, there's something broken in how people are being raised.

You're underestimating how many people live in food deserts and basically don't have access to fresh food. That might seem like a nitpick against a larger argument, but I think it serves as a good example for why you need to take a close look at the environment that these people exist in as a whole, and that it likely goes beyond their innate habits or those of just their immediate family in childhood.

Additionally, for several decades Americans have lived in an environment that makes time feel like a precious resource which must be stolen back any way possible, which companies are all too happy to play into with food products that sell themselves chiefly on the idea of convenience. This then shapes the collective palate to prefer processed foods over fresh alternatives.

Also, even when suburbans have decent access to fresh food, it’s often not favored because trips to the supermarket are an ordeal that only happens every ~2 weeks and fresh food doesn’t fare as well on longer timespans like that. Fresh diets work best for those who can walk to their grocer.

Re: Infowars and Goop sell the same exact pseudoscientific "wellness" products

#70

Post by genter »

gumby wrote: post #48

Worth reading just to learn of the existence of "activated cashews" Our enzyme-rich, activated, and dehydrated cashews are a mineral-dense protein. Pure, alkaline water awakens the nuts' dormant properties, increasing digestibility and micronutrient, vitamin, and enzyme count. These raw, activated, bio-available nuts are a low-glycemic source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. As well as a product for sale at infowa…

Not sure what your point is. It's well established that soaking nuts and seeds so they begin to sprout is healthier. I realize that it's written with a marketing slant, but it's not wrong.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sprouting#Nutrition

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