3 ms·

They are not labeled clearly, IMO. Oscillococcinum is labeled with “flu-like symptoms” “body aches, headache, fever, chills, fatigue” “medicine” and “works natu

They are not labeled clearly, IMO. Oscillococcinum is labeled with “flu-like symptoms” “body aches, headache, fever, chills, fatigue” “medicine” and “works naturally with your body”. These fall on a spectrum between misleading and outright lies. While “fever” may be seen as an only misleading label (the label doesn’t say that it treats fever in any way, so you could make that argument), there are some outright falsehoods on that box. “Works naturally with your body” is an outright falsehood. It would have to work, in order to work naturally with your body. “Medicine” is another outright falsehood. The shit should be regulated into oblivion.

slibhb 3y ago
Do you really think the government should regulate use of the word "medicine"? Ditto for claims like "works naturally". I think it's pretty clear that this stuff is alternative medicine. Your suggestion would be like forcing astrology books to include warnings. I think you have to treat people like adults here, which includes realizing that they are going to do/buy dumb things. Only when those things come at a significant risk is it worth interfering.
- klodolph 3y ago
  Yes, I do believe that the government should regulate use of the word “medicine” in trade. It also regulates a lot of other words, like “ketchup” and “ice cream”. The government regulates what “12 fl. oz” means when you buy a can of root beer, and regulates exactly how the number of calories should be printed on the wrapper for a chocolate bar. Notice how a lot of desserts in the frozen section of your grocery store are labeled “frozen dairy dessert”. That is because those specific desserts are not permitted to be called “ice cream”, just like how oscillococcinum should not be permitted to be called “medicine”. There’s a balance here, but oscillococcinum is not an edge case. It is pseudoscientific fraud. I’m glad that this isn’t the Wild West of snake oil salesmen like we had back in the day. People used to really get hurt! I think more of these regulations would improve the situation even more—herbal supplements, for example, should be labeled with the quantity of ingredients more accurately—right now, it can be a bit of a crapshoot due to the variations between vendors or even between different batches from the same vendor.
  - slibhb 3y ago
    > It also regulates a lot of other words, like “ketchup” and “ice cream”. It shouldn't. > The government regulates what “12 fl. oz” means when you buy a can of root beer, and regulates exactly how the number of calories should be printed on the wrapper for a chocolate bar. This is reasonable regulation. > I’m glad that this isn’t the Wild West of snake oil salesmen like we had back in the day. People used to really get hurt! I think more of these regulations would improve the situation even more—herbal supplements, for example, should be labeled with the quantity of ingredients more accurately—right now, it can be a bit of a crapshoot due to the variations between vendors or even between different batches from the same vendor. As long as true information and real medicine are available, it won't be "the Wild West of snake oil salesmen". And that should be the focus here, rather than attacking or regulating false information. Meanwhile if people choose to buy shit on InfoWars or venture down the homeopathy aisle at CVS, we should roll our eyes but let them be.
    - klodolph 3y ago
      > And that should be the focus here, rather than attacking or regulating false information. This approach is too callous and cold-hearted for my taste. I can’t stomach it. The real consequences for human life is, I think, too severe to ignore. All I am asking is that the box, sold in stores, be labeled correctly and clearly. The labeling does not have to be perfect, but it should meet some minimum standards.

slibhb 3y ago

Do you really think the government should regulate use of the word "medicine"? Ditto for claims like "works naturally". I think it's pretty clear that this stuff is alternative medicine. Your suggestion would be like forcing astrology books to include warnings. I think you have to treat people like adults here, which includes realizing that they are going to do/buy dumb things. Only when those things come at a significant risk is it worth interfering.

klodolph 3y ago
Yes, I do believe that the government should regulate use of the word “medicine” in trade. It also regulates a lot of other words, like “ketchup” and “ice cream”. The government regulates what “12 fl. oz” means when you buy a can of root beer, and regulates exactly how the number of calories should be printed on the wrapper for a chocolate bar. Notice how a lot of desserts in the frozen section of your grocery store are labeled “frozen dairy dessert”. That is because those specific desserts are not permitted to be called “ice cream”, just like how oscillococcinum should not be permitted to be called “medicine”. There’s a balance here, but oscillococcinum is not an edge case. It is pseudoscientific fraud. I’m glad that this isn’t the Wild West of snake oil salesmen like we had back in the day. People used to really get hurt! I think more of these regulations would improve the situation even more—herbal supplements, for example, should be labeled with the quantity of ingredients more accurately—right now, it can be a bit of a crapshoot due to the variations between vendors or even between different batches from the same vendor.
- slibhb 3y ago
  > It also regulates a lot of other words, like “ketchup” and “ice cream”. It shouldn't. > The government regulates what “12 fl. oz” means when you buy a can of root beer, and regulates exactly how the number of calories should be printed on the wrapper for a chocolate bar. This is reasonable regulation. > I’m glad that this isn’t the Wild West of snake oil salesmen like we had back in the day. People used to really get hurt! I think more of these regulations would improve the situation even more—herbal supplements, for example, should be labeled with the quantity of ingredients more accurately—right now, it can be a bit of a crapshoot due to the variations between vendors or even between different batches from the same vendor. As long as true information and real medicine are available, it won't be "the Wild West of snake oil salesmen". And that should be the focus here, rather than attacking or regulating false information. Meanwhile if people choose to buy shit on InfoWars or venture down the homeopathy aisle at CVS, we should roll our eyes but let them be.
  - klodolph 3y ago
    > And that should be the focus here, rather than attacking or regulating false information. This approach is too callous and cold-hearted for my taste. I can’t stomach it. The real consequences for human life is, I think, too severe to ignore. All I am asking is that the box, sold in stores, be labeled correctly and clearly. The labeling does not have to be perfect, but it should meet some minimum standards.