Why You Should Not Follow Youtube Health Advice: who is the "Drugless Doctor" on Youtube?

If you look on Youtube for health advice, you may have come across Dr. Bob DeMaria, who goes by the moniker "Drugless Doctor", and sometimes, "Dr.Bob".

The problem is, he never got an MD. The closest credential he got was a chiropractic degree he got from the "National College of Health Sciences" (now National University of Health Sciences) back in 1978.

Bob mentioned in his LinkedIn profile that he went to Clayton College for further studies. What he did not mention was that Clayton College of Natural Health was NOT an accredited school, does mostly distance learning, and closed in 2010 instead of seeking accreditation, and was sued by students who got neither degree nor refund. Indeed, one investigation by the state turned up someone who managed to obtain FOUR diplomas from this school over 14 month period: BS, MS, Ph.D., AND "Doctor of Naturopathy".

Clayton College is also known for selling their founder's nutritional supplements "Doctor Clayton's Naturals", from minerals and vitamins to homeopathic remedies.

But that's not the most disturbing thing about Bob DeMaria (I refuse to call him doctor)...

How One Woman Scammed a Dozen People out of $5.4 Million

Woman claimed to have purchased software from Europe that can let doctors to remotely examine and talk with patients, and need more money to pay taxes and fees.  But it was all a ruse. In the end she got $5.4 million from about 50 people and spent it mostly on herself and her friends, only 300K actually went to the software, and it's not even purchased.

But what's really disturbing is how she exploited her friends and victims, making them believe they just need to lie a little, she'll get the money soon. Even more, she convinced two ex-air-marshals into pretending to be still active to intimidate people into coughing up more money.

What's even more disturbing is she apparently believes she will be offered probation because of her education and career... as she somehow has degrees in electrical engineering and law...

Unfortunately, this time, the law has documented all of her lies... Like her claim that a fictitious billionaire will "lend" her 74 million, and the time she claimed to be in negotiation for the "loan", she's actually in Jamaica, celebrating one of her girlfriend's birthday. And she had been to Bora Bora and other ritz-y resorts around the world, all while claiming medical emergencies and tough negotiations to her victims, trying to squeeze even more money... Once, the victims even sent her the social security check...

And it's not just the money, but the devastation it left behind on the victims. Most of the victims had invested their life savings, and even mortgaged their homes and businesses to put in even more money for a "sure bet". Now they have lost everything, all based on lies, lies, and more lies.

Meet Keisha L Williams, who will be spending the next 15 and a half years in Federal prison. And this is her story.

Would You Pay Someone to Commit Suicide? 13000 People did. Really.

According to a recently published paper, 13000 people paid over 1.4 million dollars to help 200 people commit suicide. Except they thought they were paying for zero-evidence treatment for desperate cancer patients. In other words, these so-called do-gooders paid scammer quacks to help sick people commit suicide by paying huge amounts of money for water... i.e. homeopathic cancer treatments.

That's 1.4 million bucks raised to pay for some VERY expensive water proven to do nothing, that could have been used for palliative care or other purposes that may have made final moments of life more bearable. 1.4 million bucks could have paid for a lot of weed or even more powerful opioids or whatever the cancer patients needed to spend the final days in peace, and leave some for their family to cover other expenses.

Instead, the money is going to cancer quacks, doing NOTHING for the actual patients, who have to live their final days with treatment proven to do NOTHING, see their hopes dashed and pain unmanaged.

Basically, the 1.4 million bucks paid for suicide by water and pain.

British Columbia (Canada) Chiropractic Org Crack Down on Spurious Claims by Members, How About US?

You will often find that chiropractors claim to be able to treat everything from ADHD and Alzheimers to diabetes, infertility, all the way to Down's syndrome, and they are all over websites, blogs, and social media postings. There is absolutely ZERO evidence chiropractic can treat those afflictions. It seems one professional organization is finally doing something about these unsupported claims... and it's a chiropractic organization.

College of Chiropractors of British Columbia (Canada) has warned all members from making efficacy claims in its latest policy clarification, mandated any claims to be removed ASAP, and the deadline passed three days ago (on 01-NOV-2018).

What is also interesting is BC Chiropractors are NOT allowed to give public opinions about vaccination (for or against) as chiropractors are NOT trained in infectious diseases. Yet it didn't stop some chiropractors, including two BC College of Chiropractors board members, from taking an antivax stance on social media. Both promptly deleted their antivax post after being reminded of the college policy. And one vice-chair has resigned after posting a video claiming a smoothie is more effective than a flu shot at preventing flu.

So where are such regulations or policies in the US?

Breaking News / Woo Files: Nu Skin Taiwan head accused of illegally importing medical devices

News from Taiwan via Malaysia, original Chinese and English translation provided. (Thanks to JusticeAlwaysLate for spreading this bit of news)

台灣．新北市18日訊）在馬來西亞、新加坡和汶萊都設有分公司的著名直銷公司美商如新華茂（NU SKIN）台灣總裁姜惠琳與多名幹部、高階直銷商，涉嫌明知產品“BODY SPA機”是未獲衛生機關核准輸入的醫療器材，仍在2012年間從香港帶1萬多套回台販售，獲利約1600多萬元台幣（下同．約210萬令吉）。新北地檢署昨依違反《藥事法》等罪嫌，起訴姜女等31人。

(Taiwan, Taipei Dec 18th) Well-known direct selling US company Nu Skin, with branches in Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei, has its Taiwan CEO Huilin Jiang, along with several officers and high level members accused of knowing that the product "Body Spa machine" is an "not permitted as import" medical device, yet brought back over 10000 kits from Hong Kong for sale in Taiwan, profited over 16 million NTD (almost $500000 USD). Taipei Public Prosecutor's Office has now officially charged 31 people, including Ms. Jiang, with violations of "Drug Regulation Act". 

美商如新集團1984年在美國創立，以直銷方式銷售、製造美妝保養品，至今已跨足全球54個市場，1992年設立台灣分公司，2007年由姜惠琳接任台總裁，還曾贊助2013年的台北101跨年煙火。

Nu Skin is founded in the US in 1984 and operates via direct sales of cosmetics, and is now in 54 markets around the world. Taiwan branch was established in 1992, and Ms. Jiang took over as CEO in 2007. Nu Skin Taiwan was a sponsor of the 101 building New Years Fireworks and festivities 2013. 

全案起因於前年，一名林姓賣家在網路上販售號稱能緊緻肌膚的“BODY SPA機”，被檢舉未經核准，林到案供稱是向如新直銷商購買後，獲緩起訴。

The case started three years ago. A "Lin" advertised a machine online for sale called "Body Spa" that claimed to tighten muscle tone, and was investigated as the device is not legally permitted for sale without Taiwan FDA approval. Lin cooperated with investigators and said he got the machine from Nu Skin reps and had his case continued. 

不過檢調追查，發現衛生署早在2011年，就曾以未附安全證明文件等理由，禁止如新進口“臉部SPA機”，但姜惠琳仍在同年底，未申請主管機關核准，就另外核可BODY SPA機行銷策略，由如新的寰宇領袖、藍鑽級主任等高階直銷商，向下線會員推銷，稱可向海外預購BODY SPA機，然後趁集團在香港舉辦大中華區年會時領貨。

Further investigations show that the Taiwan FDA had denied Nu Skin's import of Body Spa back in 2011, due to various reasons including "no safety documents included". However, Ms. Jiang went ahead, later in 2011, and approved sales strategy of Body Spa kits by (Cosmo?) leaders, Blue Diamond level execs, and such highest level members to be promoted to lower level members, claiming that the high level execs can pre-pay for these new machines and stock them overseas, and everybody can pick up their stock when Nu Skin held their convention in Hong Kong later. 

A Common Scam Defense: Similarity Between Homeopathy Advocacy and HYIP promotion

A frequent refrain among HYIP promotion are the following points:

• It's a conspiracy to destroy the alternative forms of income they don't want you to know
• You should be in control of your money, not limited to what "they" want you to know
• Various versions of _____ had been around since ______ and we do something like that

You can find this in almost every HYIP. If they were not outright stated, they were surely implied, or weasel worded like "new and profitable enterprise", often cloaked with buzzwords like cryptocurrency, penny auction, e-commerce, VOIP, and so on. 

We've seen the collapse of various scams using such cloaks. 

TVI Express, a huge international pyramid scheme that spanned several continents (India, Australia, US, most of Europe, several countries in Africa, China, Indonesia, Philippines...) claimed to be selling travel or travel club, and promoted itself as combining internet, e-commerce, working from home, and such. Little travel was provided. 

ZeekRewards, an international ponzi scheme was truly global with net winners (and victims) all over the world. It claimed to be earning huge profits through its penny auctions, but in reality it simply shifted money from last investors to the early joiners through facade of "profit sharing". It was shut down by Secret Service and forced into receivership.

Another scam was TelexFree, where owners claimed to be selling VOIP packages which lets you talk international voice calls over the Internet and avoid long distance phone fees (and for a while, they really did) but in reality is operating a Ponzi scheme based out of two separate countries: Brazil and the US, with investors form all over the world before it was shut down in Brazil, then the US, and even FBI and Homeland Security got involved in the raids.  It is estimated that company took in over 1 BILLION dollars from 1.9 million investors. 

In more recent news, UFUN out of Malaysia and Thailand enticed members to invest in its cryptocurrency UTOKEN, while claimed to be investing in various enterprises that will realize huge profit for its members. Thailand started a full crackdown weeks ago and had arrested more than a dozen high rankers, with wanted notices out for 200 more, with 300000 pages of evidence handed over to prosecutor's office recently, so there's obviously more to come. Its members were also arrested in Samoa and other places for fraud. 

They all implied that they are new ways to make money, that other people don't know or don't want you to know, and they can actually do what they promise. 

This sounds remarkably like homeopathy and alternative medicine advocacy to me, as they use the same arguments:

• It's a conspiracy of "mainstream medicine" to destroy "alternative medicine"
• You should be in control of your health, not have a limited vision forced upon you
• Various versions of alternative medicine had been around since _____

I'll leave the debunking of the homeopathy advocacy to Michael Vagg, while I tackle the HYIP promotion.