Dr. Quackery and His Friends Trivia Quiz

Answer: Electrons

Albert Abrams was the epitome of the quack. For example, he claimed he could cure disease over the telephone, by examining a drop of blood, and by looking at the patient's handwriting. He made numerous fake medical machines, which he claimed manipulated electrons.

He became very wealthy from the exorbitant prices he charged for them. Incredibly, both Upton Sinclair and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle publicly supported him and believed him to be a miracle worker in spite of the many deaths attributed to his advice and his machines.

He was exposed publicly when another doctor sent him a blood sample asking for a diagnosis. Abrams advised that the patient had malaria, syphilis, diabetes, and cancer. At this time, the other physician went public with the fact the blood provided to Abrams was from a rooster.

He died before his criminal trial for medical fraud could commence.

Answer: Iris patterns

Iridology was an alternative medicine technique which proposed the unique patterns found on a person's iris could provide valuable information to a persons present and future health. He was also a proponent of fasting, colon hydrotherapy and color therapy as a cures for almost any disorder.

He owned at least three sanitariums which provided many alternative care methods for those desperate enough to shell out his high prices. Jensen was not a trained physician, but an entrepreneur who became wealthy in the field of alternative medicine.

His name is synonymous with the term 'quack'.

Answer: Color

Dinshah Ghadiali was a Hindu scientist who, in 1933, published "The Spectro Chromemetry Encyclopaedia". He claimed that he could cure any ailment by controlling the color of light to which a patient was exposed. He stated that different colors were related to different parts of the body, and that a lack of exposure to certain colors was the cause of disease.

He claimed his invention, which he called the Spectro-Chrome, would make visits to the family doctor a thing of the past. He also claimed drinking liquids from appropriately colored bottles, glasses, or cups also had a major effect on a person's health.

The only thing he admitted chromotherapy could not cure was a broken bone.

Answer: Chiropractic

D. D. Palmer was a Canadian store keeper turned 'healer'. He claimed to have healed a man who was deaf just by realigning the man's back. He claimed that spinal manipulation could cure just about anything and that most diseases were caused by a misalignment of the spine.

He opened the Palmer School of Chiropractic in 1897 and began to teach others his techniques. He claimed to have received his powers of healing from a deceased physician who spoke to him "from the other world". After numerous lawsuits and some terms of imprisonment Palmer died after being struck by a car in mysterious circumstances.

It was argued that he died from typhoid fever he contracted while healing from his accident which involved him being struck by his son's vehicle while his son was driving. Chiropractic was unable to help him.

This is a field which has come a long way and no longer claims to cure all disease. It is not fully accepted by all physicians but there is no doubt, that as it is practiced today, it has helped many people who have back issues. Do your research before you see a chiropractor to make sure that this is the correct treatment for your problem.

Answer: Radiation

Bailey made and sold many radioactive products. "Radithor" was a radioactive elixir that was guaranteed to be "A Cure for the Living Dead". He claimed that adding radium to the public water system would cure diabetes, constipation, as well as all types of mental illness.

Another one of his products was "Arium", was a radioactive aphrodisiac that promised renewed vigor and greater enjoyment of coitus. What is really frightening is that this man was also the manager of the electronic division of International Business Machines, known to most of the world as IBM.

Answer: Teething

For centuries, high infant mortality levels caused many people to think that teething was the cause of their baby's death. Chamberlen preyed on this fear by selling his "Anodyne Necklace" to parents looking to prevent the death of their infant. In spite of the fact that his invention was totally ineffective, he preyed on frightened parents for years.

When an infant did die, he put the blame on the parents, claiming that they had not put the necklace on the baby correctly.

Answer: The Road to Wellville

While John Harvey Kellogg was actually a medical doctor, there is no doubt he belongs with the other names in this quiz. This eccentric health nut ran a sanitarium at which he practiced some very masochistic treatments which he claimed were needed to improve or maintain health.

Some of these treatments included yoghurt enemas, marching while eating, complete abstinence, complete immersion into freezing water and the application of carbolic acid to the clitoris of his female patients. He claimed to be able to cure any disease as long as the patient got to him soon enough.

His story was dramatized in the 1994 movie "The Road to Wellville" which featured some of his sado-masochistic treatments.

Answer: True

James Graham became rich by convincing people that they would be healed or their health improved by being buried in dirt up to their necks. James Graham was a quack with very creative ideas. He swore that his earth bath, in which the person was buried in dirt up to their neck, would cleanse and purify the body.

He claimed his dirt bath could cure almost any disease as long as the patient bathed (in dirt) regularly. He also built an erotic chapel, which he named "The Temple of the Hymen" complete with a 12'x 9' bed. Decorated with flashing lights and erotic paintings he guaranteed one night at his temple could cure any sexual problem.

Answer: Battle space aliens

Reich claimed to have discovered a type of energy which he called 'Orgone'. It was a type of primordial cosmic energy that could cure many disorders, mainly cancer. But even more amazingly, it could be used to manipulate the weather and battle space aliens. After a long investigation by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) he was banned from advertising or selling his invention and was proclaimed a fraud. When he refused to appear in court he was arrested and sent to Danbury Federal Prison for two years. While incarcerated, his writings and his inventions were burned in a public incinerator. He died while in prison of a heart attack.

This case is particularly odd, as Wilhelm Reich had a genuine MD and early in his career had been taken seriously as a very forward-looking psychiatrist. Why a respected psychiatrist turned to such obvious and bizarre quackery is a mystery.

Answer: False

Medical quackery has been around since the beginning of mankind and will probably be around till the end of mankind. As long as there is money to be made by promising quick and easy cures, or by persuading people that they will look younger, weigh less, live longer or be more virile, there will always be suckers ready to shell out the money. Most quacks are not physicians but skilled entrepreneurs who know how to play on people's weaknesses and fears.