Pollywogs!

Oh, wait…it isn’t about the Bush administration…and I’m not talking about the Pope…and I’m not talking about Hitler (you like how I worked Hitler in with the Pope and the Bush administration?).

First, some links:

Did ’so and so’ die with 40 pounds of impacted shit in their bowels? (no)

The modern fear of “autointoxication” and  “irregularity”

A mucoid plaque by any other name…

‘Real results’ from ‘real people’, with really disturbing pictures of cooked intestines held over toilets

“Death begins in the colon”

From the ‘real results’ website:

“When I had my first “weird” bowel movement, I found myself uncharacteristically poking around in the toilet with a chopstick. When I lifted my movement, it felt like it was made of rubber. It was clingy, and I couldn’t break it apart.”

Uh-huh…

Alright…so what is the truth?  Let’s start with some real pictures.  Have you ever seen a colonoscopy?  Well, neither had I till I looked on Google Images…outside of a TV show at least…but I had an idea that even a diseased and distressed colon sure as shit didn’t look anything at all like those ‘real results’ from ‘real people’…and it doesn’t, it looks clean and pink (well, as long as you aren’t very close to a bowel movement).  The ‘death begins in the colon’ pics?  Look more than a little like stewed intestine (ok, those are pics of flame broiled, skewered small intestine…couldn’t find any good pics of stewed/steamed intestine).

So, it may be that someone is playing a bit with the truth to sell some fiber and herbal supplements…

From the ‘fear of “autointoxication” website:

“The theory of “autointoxication” states that stagnation of the large intestine (colon) causes toxins to form that are absorbed and poison the body. Some proponents depict the large intestine as a “sewage system” that becomes a “cesspool” if neglected. Other proponents state that constipation causes hardened feces to accumulate for months (or even years) on the walls of the large intestine and block it from absorbing or eliminating properly. This, they say, causes food to remain undigested and wastes from the blood to be reabsorbed by the body [2].

Around the turn of the twentieth century many physicians accepted the concept of autointoxication, but it was abandoned after scientific observations proved it wrong. In 1919 and 1922, it was clearly demonstrated that symptoms of headache, fatigue, and loss of appetite that accompanied fecal impaction were caused by mechanical distension of the colon rather than by production or absorption of toxins [3,4]. Moreover, direct observation of the colon during surgical procedures or autopsies found no evidence that hardened feces accumulate on the intestinal walls.”

So…someone is outright lying to sell some fiber and herbal supplements…
From the mucoid plaque website:

“”Mucoid plaque” is a bogus “diagnosis” made up by the creator and producer of Arise & Shine, Richard Anderson, ND. ”

…

““I coined the term mucoid plaque, meaning a film of mucus, to describe the unhealthy accumulation of abnormal mucous matter on the walls of the intestines. Conventional medicine knows this as a layering of mucin or glycoproteins (made up of 20 amino acids and 50% carbohydrates) which are naturally and appropriately secreted by intestines as protection from acids and toxins.”
– from “What is Mucoid Plaque?”, by Richard Anderson”

…

“He has created a cleansing product that produces what the product is claimed to cleanse. I’m tempted to call it a brilliant scam, but I’ll leave that decision up to the courts, in case (hopefully) he ever gets sued by those who decide to do so. He’s earned millions by marketing this false idea, and the spreading of false ideas should be punished.

Here’s how this possible scam works:

Sell people a product that creates a condition, then claim that the product is curing the condition, without any proof that the condition was there before taking the product. (Mucus only becomes “plaque” *after* using his product.)”

Interesting…an industry founded on primeval and misguided fears and beliefs, long ago refuted by science, logic and reason.  Some folks selling a product that produces results which prove their position (is that a straw man argument), some folks selling a product and snapping gross pictures to goad folks on the fence into action…

I guess the logical follow-up is to buy some intestine, throw in a jar of fake gravy, stew for an hour or two, and take a picture of it over the old toilet bowl…

—

Completely unrelated, hats off to Gwen Stefani’s plastic surgeon.