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If It Sounds Like a Quack...: A Journey to the Fringes of American Medicine
A Pulitzer Prize finalist's bizarre journalistic journey through the world of fringe medicine, filled with leeches, baking soda IVs, and, according to at least one person, zombies.
It's no secret that American health care has become too costly and politicized to help everyone. So where do you turn if you can't afford doctors, or don't trust them? Inthis book, Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling examines the growing universe of non-traditional treatments -- including some that are really non-traditional.
With costs skyrocketing and anti-science sentiment spreading, the so-called "medical freedom" movement has grown. Now it faces its greatest going mainstream. In these pages you'll meet medical freedom advocates including an international leech smuggler, a gold miner-turned health drink salesman who may or may not be from the Andromeda galaxy, and a man who says he can turn people into zombies with aerosol spray. One by one, these alternative healers find customers, then expand and influence, always seeking the one thing that would take their businesses to the next level--the support and approval of the government.
Should the government dictate what is medicine and what isn't? Can we have public health when disagreements over science are this profound? No, seriously, can you turn people into flesh-eating zombies? If It Sounds Like a Quack asks these critical questions while telling the story of how we got to this improbable moment, and wondering where we go from here. Buckle up for a bumpy ride...unless you're against seatbelts.
It's no secret that American health care has become too costly and politicized to help everyone. So where do you turn if you can't afford doctors, or don't trust them? Inthis book, Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling examines the growing universe of non-traditional treatments -- including some that are really non-traditional.
With costs skyrocketing and anti-science sentiment spreading, the so-called "medical freedom" movement has grown. Now it faces its greatest going mainstream. In these pages you'll meet medical freedom advocates including an international leech smuggler, a gold miner-turned health drink salesman who may or may not be from the Andromeda galaxy, and a man who says he can turn people into zombies with aerosol spray. One by one, these alternative healers find customers, then expand and influence, always seeking the one thing that would take their businesses to the next level--the support and approval of the government.
Should the government dictate what is medicine and what isn't? Can we have public health when disagreements over science are this profound? No, seriously, can you turn people into flesh-eating zombies? If It Sounds Like a Quack asks these critical questions while telling the story of how we got to this improbable moment, and wondering where we go from here. Buckle up for a bumpy ride...unless you're against seatbelts.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published April 4, 2023
66 people are currently reading
3841 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
January 27, 2023
2.5 stars rounded up. This book presents stories of eight individuals who each believe they have found the ultimate panacea, what Hongoltz-Hetling calls the "One True Cure." From leeches to prayer to a bleach compound called Miracle Mineral Supplement, each person in this book thinks that their cure is the best one out there, and they're determined to make a buck selling it, too. The book details each of these individuals' stories while commenting on gaps in our system - the Internet, legal definitions limiting jurisdiction, human stupidity and gullibility, distrust in big pharma, and most importantly, the slow bureaucracy of the FDA - that make quashing these pseudo-scientific, often dangerous "medicines" extremely difficult.
Although this is an interesting concept that showcases some truly nutty people, I didn't really vibe with the writing of this book. It's got a very goofy, millennial, sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek attitude to it (e.g., repeats of "Big if true!", a strange metasyntactic variable paragraph to test the language of One True Cures that ends in "Putting thingumies back changes thingamajigs back to somethings and stimulates metabolic processes at the wossname level. Yada yada yada, I Am Groot."). Some turns of phrase are simply baffling, such as "[I was] driving the neat, straight line of Highway 75 and cutting across Florida's tip like a circumcision."
In my opinion, the author spent far, far too much time on the backstories of these people and not enough time on what I think is more interesting: the systemic failures that allow these fringe theories to persist and succeed - perhaps I just wanted a different book.
Thank you to Public Affairs for the ARC via Netgalley.
Although this is an interesting concept that showcases some truly nutty people, I didn't really vibe with the writing of this book. It's got a very goofy, millennial, sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek attitude to it (e.g., repeats of "Big if true!", a strange metasyntactic variable paragraph to test the language of One True Cures that ends in "Putting thingumies back changes thingamajigs back to somethings and stimulates metabolic processes at the wossname level. Yada yada yada, I Am Groot."). Some turns of phrase are simply baffling, such as "[I was] driving the neat, straight line of Highway 75 and cutting across Florida's tip like a circumcision."
In my opinion, the author spent far, far too much time on the backstories of these people and not enough time on what I think is more interesting: the systemic failures that allow these fringe theories to persist and succeed - perhaps I just wanted a different book.
Thank you to Public Affairs for the ARC via Netgalley.
March 12, 2023
-laugh out loud funny, especially with his various bits he kept up (game show host was my personal favorite)
-still managed to be very informative. obviously it had a bias, but this is a topic it would be hard to stay objective on
-extremely engaging and easy to read, especially the way it switched between the narratives to keep the story moving
-there was plenty of stuff that i wanted to know more about, but thats to be expected with any base level non fiction book. he provided more than enough information for any reader to be able to find more reading on any of the topics/people discussed
-overall, this was a really great nonfiction read. not at all uplifting or hopeful, but by injecting humor into the topic he made it much more digestible
cw: covid-19, cancer, death, blood, injury/injury detail, medical stuff (general), flood, religious extremism, child death/abuse, guns, xenophobia, ableism
thank you to Netgalley and PublicAffairs for the e-ARC!
-still managed to be very informative. obviously it had a bias, but this is a topic it would be hard to stay objective on
-extremely engaging and easy to read, especially the way it switched between the narratives to keep the story moving
-there was plenty of stuff that i wanted to know more about, but thats to be expected with any base level non fiction book. he provided more than enough information for any reader to be able to find more reading on any of the topics/people discussed
-overall, this was a really great nonfiction read. not at all uplifting or hopeful, but by injecting humor into the topic he made it much more digestible
cw: covid-19, cancer, death, blood, injury/injury detail, medical stuff (general), flood, religious extremism, child death/abuse, guns, xenophobia, ableism
thank you to Netgalley and PublicAffairs for the e-ARC!
October 3, 2022
This book is full of cure all solutions from bleach, to lasers, leeches in those who believe God is a genie and if those aren’t crazy enough there’s even an alien who believes he has a cure all solution this book is not only interesting it was very well researched is even a chapter on zombies but let’s not confuse that with the first chapter where the guy who uses lasers to cure everything says he knows how to make a zombie. I truly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. If you like crazy stories told with a bunch of LOL moments you need to read “if it sounds like a quack…� I thoroughly enjoyed it please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review I received this book from the publisher in NetGalley but I’m leaving this review voluntarily.
September 29, 2024
Ugh. Horrible. This was just boring stories about con artists. This didn’t pull me in at all and I’m just not sure he even had a point, but it was also so incredibly preachy. Oh well, guess I wasted some time, but there’s so many other good books out there.
May 19, 2023
I know it’s bad to rate books you DNF. But, if you get to the 50% mark and the author has no thesis or reason for writing the book other than let’s laugh at these gullible people, then I am justified in rating it without finishing it. It’s a mean spirited book that adds nothing to why people fall for or believe in medically unsound ideas. Perhaps the author’s point comes out in much later chapters and I’m old fashioned to expect the introduction to include some sort of thesis statement?
January 24, 2025
Co za świetna książka! Autor z dużym dystansem i ogromną ironią opowiada o szarlatanach, wielbicielach medycyny alternatywnej i ludzi przekonanych, że znaleźli uniwersalne remedium na wszystkie dolegliwości (z rakiem i cukrzycą na czele). Pisze o nich w sposób zjadliwy i sarkastyczny, bo inaczej się nie da. Jednak autor zmienia ton, gdy opowiada o tym, do czego ich rosnąca w USA popularność prowadzi - nie śmiejemy się, gdy czytamy o 11-latce dniami konającej na łóżku, ponieważ rodzice zamiast zawieźć ją do lekarza, leczą ją modlitwą lub gdy kolejne osoby umierają, przyjmując szemrane specyfiki. To nie tylko historia ludzi, którzy myślą, że wyleczą cały świat - to też świetny obraz stanu ochrony zdrowia USA i społeczeństwa, które od lat odchodzi od medycyny na rzecz szarlatanów i suplementów, a co swój szczyt miało niewątpliwie w 2020 roku. Przerażająca lektura, pokazująca jak na naszych oczach świat się cofa, odchodząc od nauki.
January 18, 2025
3.5
Gdyby ta książka była zdecydowanie bardziej uporządkowana, to byłoby to 5 gwiazdek
Gdyby ta książka była zdecydowanie bardziej uporządkowana, to byłoby to 5 gwiazdek
August 15, 2023
I'm struggling with this book.
There is a very obvious bias here - in case you didn't get that from the title alone - and even though I mostly share it, I don't think I'm a fan.
While it's clear that non-fiction always contains the author's bias, in this case it's not only blatant but there's also outright editorializing that takes away from the seriousness of some of the situations. It makes me feel like I want to drag this out of "general non-fiction" and drop it over in "opinion/essay" with Dave Barry et al.
I probably would have overlooked most of it but something about the author's referring to Trump as "the game show host" without every naming him and downgrading January 6 to a tongue-in-cheek "animated kerfuffle" just really bothered me. The obvious connection between the folks he discusses and the Trump presidency are eye-opening and an important marker of the country at that time but instead of leading the reader to an understanding of how dangerous that administration's actions were, it gets diffused and becomes a joke.
I don't know - I liked reading about these people and what they were doing - where they came from - how they all merged, I guess I just didn't like the attitude (and for me to say that, well...something's amiss!)
There is a very obvious bias here - in case you didn't get that from the title alone - and even though I mostly share it, I don't think I'm a fan.
While it's clear that non-fiction always contains the author's bias, in this case it's not only blatant but there's also outright editorializing that takes away from the seriousness of some of the situations. It makes me feel like I want to drag this out of "general non-fiction" and drop it over in "opinion/essay" with Dave Barry et al.
I probably would have overlooked most of it but something about the author's referring to Trump as "the game show host" without every naming him and downgrading January 6 to a tongue-in-cheek "animated kerfuffle" just really bothered me. The obvious connection between the folks he discusses and the Trump presidency are eye-opening and an important marker of the country at that time but instead of leading the reader to an understanding of how dangerous that administration's actions were, it gets diffused and becomes a joke.
I don't know - I liked reading about these people and what they were doing - where they came from - how they all merged, I guess I just didn't like the attitude (and for me to say that, well...something's amiss!)
January 24, 2023
Explorations of five distinct ~alternatives~ to traditional Western medicine (prayer, leeches, lasers, alkalinity, and supplements) through biographies and deep dives into the people who popularized them as medicinal practice. He tracks each person from their start time to present and we can see how they all weave together into the current medical freedom movement, which was my favorite part of the book.
I will say that even though I agree with the author, I found the overall tone of the book to be a little smug and off-putting. I guess that's his brand of humor but just not my cup of tea! The intel was interesting though. 3.5 stars
I will say that even though I agree with the author, I found the overall tone of the book to be a little smug and off-putting. I guess that's his brand of humor but just not my cup of tea! The intel was interesting though. 3.5 stars
February 20, 2025
Kiedy zaczynałem lekturę nie byłem przekonany. Obawiałem się, że cała książka będzie tylko zbiorem anegdotek o kilku szarlatanach. Na szczęście szybko zostałem wyprowadzony z błędu, bo po pierwszej, bardziej informacyjnej części Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling zaczyna budować sieci powiązań na tych pojedynczych przykładach budując równie fascynujący, co przerażający obraz świata medycyny alternatywnej w USA. Dobitnie widać tu nieudolność instytucji prawnych, ruchy spiskowe doprowadzające do radykalizacji całych milionów, a wszystko to ukrywane pod płaszczykiem idiotycznych u samego podłoża idei wolności medycznej i uniwersalnego remedium. Autor wchodzi w króliczą norę, odkrywając coraz nowsze i dziwniejsze koncepcje, powiązane już nie tylko z medycyną, ale i polityką. Wiele z "Inwazji uzdrawiaczy ciał" wyciągnąłem, choćby nowe sposoby patrzenia na pojawiające się w mediach patologie powiązane z pseudonauką. Do tego dochodzi jeszcze to, że całość czyta się po prostu świetnie, bo jest utrzymana w luźnym tonie, nie tracąc przy tym powagi tematu. Autor podchodzi do wielu przedstawianych sytuacji ironicznie, złośliwie traktując postaci, o których pisze. Nie dajcie się jednak zwieść, bo często po kilku luźniejszych rozdziałach kolejny okazuje się absolutnie wstrząsający. Cała historia Neumannów i jej zakończenie rozbiło mnie emocjonalnie, podobnie jak finał wątku amerykańskiej fascynacji zombie. Jest też sporo błyskotliwych pomysłów urozmaicających lekturę, choćby kreatywna i niezwykle angażująca konstrukcja czy tytuły rozdziałów.
February 20, 2025
Sporo z tego wiedziałam, ale niektóre wątki nawet mnie zaskoczyły. Rzetelna analiza przypadków rozmaitych szarlatanów i korzeni popularności alt-medu. Z jednym zaskakującym wyjątkiem: autor nawet raz się nie zająknął o tym, że brak ubezpieczenia zdrowotnego wielu Amerykanów nie wynika z ich wyboru czy nieufności wobec systemu, tylko po prostu z biedy i z tego, że system pozostawia ludzi bez pieniędzy na pastwę losu, chorób i szarlatanów. Ale i tak warto sięgnąć. Zdecydowanie.
May 20, 2025
Książka nie broni się jako reportaż per se. Jest to raczej zbiór życiorysów kilku szalbierzy i konowałów, które czytałoby się lepiej jeden po drugim, niż po kawałku, jak jest to zaprezentowane. Niemniej, jest to ciekawa pozycja pokazująca do czego prowadzi system leczenia tak bardzo beznadziejny jak w Stanach.
February 24, 2025
3.75 ⭐️ trochę śmiesznie, trochę strasznie - ani chwili spędzonej przy tej lekturze nie żałuję, przypomniały mi się trochę książki Jona Ronsona
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August 3, 2024Completely forgot I started this in Jan...it was fun, I even recognised a few of the notorious one true cure peddlers lmao
December 14, 2023
Another excellent read by Hongoltz-Hetling. An exceptionally entertaining dive into the rise of the medical freedom movement and the snake oil salespeople behind it.
May 16, 2024
Here’s a stream of consciousness that vaguely relays my general thoughts as I read:
Early on - he’s funny! His style is delightful and these people are interesting!
Middle - this is starting to come off as a little smug and judgmental of the people who are buying into these miracle cures. Not sure how I feel about this. And hard to remember who’s who with the way the stories are broken up.
3/4 or so - oh, we’re getting downright mean about republicans and “the game show host� who ran for president. And anyone who believes that prayer is real and that Pentecostals are actual people. It isn’t lost on me that the only time I remember seeing the word “lunacy� applied - among lengthy conversations with people selling laser beams and leeches and basically bleach for you to drink - it was at the Pentecostals. Now, do I believe that the Pentecostals interviewed here are on the fringes far beyond what I’m comfortable with? Sure. But do I believe that he was mocking them openly and leaving real journalism in the dust to portray them as stupid? 100%. So close to DNFing here, but it’s for book club. Also, thanks for saying that one of the religious nuts wrote a book that “tied together the myths of the Bible with actual history.� Way to not let your bias show, bud.
ALSO also, the closer we got to the end, the more we left my “five minute limit for political talk� in the dust too. If you can’t acknowledge that the person you disagree with is a fellow human being, I’m out.
One more ALSO also, neither Celebrity Apprentice nor the Bachelor are game shows. Learn your trash, dude.
Early on - he’s funny! His style is delightful and these people are interesting!
Middle - this is starting to come off as a little smug and judgmental of the people who are buying into these miracle cures. Not sure how I feel about this. And hard to remember who’s who with the way the stories are broken up.
3/4 or so - oh, we’re getting downright mean about republicans and “the game show host� who ran for president. And anyone who believes that prayer is real and that Pentecostals are actual people. It isn’t lost on me that the only time I remember seeing the word “lunacy� applied - among lengthy conversations with people selling laser beams and leeches and basically bleach for you to drink - it was at the Pentecostals. Now, do I believe that the Pentecostals interviewed here are on the fringes far beyond what I’m comfortable with? Sure. But do I believe that he was mocking them openly and leaving real journalism in the dust to portray them as stupid? 100%. So close to DNFing here, but it’s for book club. Also, thanks for saying that one of the religious nuts wrote a book that “tied together the myths of the Bible with actual history.� Way to not let your bias show, bud.
ALSO also, the closer we got to the end, the more we left my “five minute limit for political talk� in the dust too. If you can’t acknowledge that the person you disagree with is a fellow human being, I’m out.
One more ALSO also, neither Celebrity Apprentice nor the Bachelor are game shows. Learn your trash, dude.
October 23, 2023
really really good. obviously it took me a long time to read it but it was because i’ve been so busy it’s hard to find time to read. this was such a clever and interesting book to read and i really recommend it!
August 2, 2023
It was interesting and indepth. I learned a lot about how our gov is trying to protect us from rogue sellers of various (and sometimes bizarre) alternative cures.
But it seems the author didn't delve into the plausibility of some herbal remedies, instead lumping all non-pharmaceutical treatments into one lump category of 'quackery'.
As I said, it was enlightening, but also a bit skewed, imo.
But it seems the author didn't delve into the plausibility of some herbal remedies, instead lumping all non-pharmaceutical treatments into one lump category of 'quackery'.
As I said, it was enlightening, but also a bit skewed, imo.
May 17, 2024
Very good at showing the overlap of many modern quacks and legal cases, their effects on society, and how it has infiltrated so much of the American political far right. It seemed to bash political ideas at points rather than focusing on the issue at hand. I think it would have been better to also explore how many of these quacks have led to other quacks and scams, how people can avoid them, and how we can help loved ones who are caught up in these cult-like beliefs. Still, an excellent read.
April 15, 2023
I requested this ARC because I'd listened to the audiobook of Hongoltz-Hetling's A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear, which is a darkly hilarious history of Grafton, New Hampshire, post-takeover by hardcore libertarians. (Spoiler: it didn't go well for anyone, including the libertarians, and there was some trouble with bears, too.)
Dark hilarity + careful reporting + thoughtful analysis seems to be H-H's stock-in-trade. I'm sorry that for some reviewers the hilarity overshadows the reporting and analysis. I can understand why that might be so, if your sense of humor doesn't match his, but I find it difficult to read about topics like libertarianism or, in Quack's case, the often literally poisonous combination of medical quackery with libertarianism, QAnon, "medical freedom," and radical right-wing politics. H-H's humor does, as it happens, mesh well with mine and makes it much easier to take in information about, and analysis of, people and subjects that frankly terrify me.
I should probably add that although H-H's wit is often biting, he's also appropriately angry without being cruel. Case in point, the Neumanns, a couple who believed so strongly that prayer was, as H-H puts it, the One True Cure that they prayed over their 11-year-old daughter Kara long enough to let her die of diabetic ketoacidosis. Hongoltz-Hetling is clearly angry on Kara's behalf while (ha, miraculously) accepting that the Neumanns sincerely believed they were helping her and protecting her from the machinations of satanic people with medical degrees. He is, of course, markedly less sympathetic to cynical hucksters like the mostly Republican politicians who profit from various One True Cures.
Hongoltz-Hetling also discusses the intersection of mistrust of authority with conspiracist thinking and, crucially, the relative unavailability of healthcare in red states. This latter, it turns out, is grounded in the maneuvering by the early-20th-century AMA to limit the supply of doctors so as to increase their incomes. It's so dispiriting to read this history, for many reasons. One, I'm a frequent flyer: I've had five major surgeries in the last decade. (I can only imagine how much money my neurosurgeon makes, but I have to admit I find it hard to begrudge him even a dollar of it given that he's responsible for the fact that I can walk around taking pictures of birds instead of spending 24/7/365 in intractable pain.) Two, I'm married to a physician and consequently in a position to see how unhappy many, many (most?) present-day doctors are with the for-profit healthcare system. Not incidentally, next up in my ARCs is If I Betray These Words, which is about the moral injury suffered by healthcare workers, and which my wife has been sending me screencap after screencap of because it articulates her own experience perfectly.
... Right. To return to this book: I would put it on the shelf with Luke Mogelson's The Storm Is Here and the reporting of Jane Mayer, as well as other excellent recent discussions of the radical right in its many guises today. Don't let the fact that Hongoltz-Hetling would like to make you laugh distract you from the seriousness of his project.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
Dark hilarity + careful reporting + thoughtful analysis seems to be H-H's stock-in-trade. I'm sorry that for some reviewers the hilarity overshadows the reporting and analysis. I can understand why that might be so, if your sense of humor doesn't match his, but I find it difficult to read about topics like libertarianism or, in Quack's case, the often literally poisonous combination of medical quackery with libertarianism, QAnon, "medical freedom," and radical right-wing politics. H-H's humor does, as it happens, mesh well with mine and makes it much easier to take in information about, and analysis of, people and subjects that frankly terrify me.
I should probably add that although H-H's wit is often biting, he's also appropriately angry without being cruel. Case in point, the Neumanns, a couple who believed so strongly that prayer was, as H-H puts it, the One True Cure that they prayed over their 11-year-old daughter Kara long enough to let her die of diabetic ketoacidosis. Hongoltz-Hetling is clearly angry on Kara's behalf while (ha, miraculously) accepting that the Neumanns sincerely believed they were helping her and protecting her from the machinations of satanic people with medical degrees. He is, of course, markedly less sympathetic to cynical hucksters like the mostly Republican politicians who profit from various One True Cures.
Hongoltz-Hetling also discusses the intersection of mistrust of authority with conspiracist thinking and, crucially, the relative unavailability of healthcare in red states. This latter, it turns out, is grounded in the maneuvering by the early-20th-century AMA to limit the supply of doctors so as to increase their incomes. It's so dispiriting to read this history, for many reasons. One, I'm a frequent flyer: I've had five major surgeries in the last decade. (I can only imagine how much money my neurosurgeon makes, but I have to admit I find it hard to begrudge him even a dollar of it given that he's responsible for the fact that I can walk around taking pictures of birds instead of spending 24/7/365 in intractable pain.) Two, I'm married to a physician and consequently in a position to see how unhappy many, many (most?) present-day doctors are with the for-profit healthcare system. Not incidentally, next up in my ARCs is If I Betray These Words, which is about the moral injury suffered by healthcare workers, and which my wife has been sending me screencap after screencap of because it articulates her own experience perfectly.
... Right. To return to this book: I would put it on the shelf with Luke Mogelson's The Storm Is Here and the reporting of Jane Mayer, as well as other excellent recent discussions of the radical right in its many guises today. Don't let the fact that Hongoltz-Hetling would like to make you laugh distract you from the seriousness of his project.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
July 13, 2023
Pulitzer Prize finalist Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling takes on the weird world of alternative medicine and the medical freedom movement in his new book, If It Sounds Like a Quack. My thanks go to Net Galley and PublicAffairs for the review copy. This book is available to the public right now.
The fact is, I have—or I had—no particular interest in alternative medicine, but I had read Hongoltz-Hetling’s last book, A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear, which was well researched, well written, and most importantly, completely hilarious. I have reviewed over 800 books, but the number of those that I later purchase is smaller than 10; yet I bought that book to give as a Christmas gift. So when I saw that he had another book available, I didn’t hesitate. And I wasn’t disappointed.
The book describes the bizarre programs and treatments espoused by six individuals: Larry Lytle, Toby McAdam, Robert O. Young, Alicja Kolyszko, Dale and Leilani Neumann, and The Alien. The seventh player in each section is America, and that’s where we see what U.S. laws say, and what enforcement, if any, comes down on these snake oil salesmen.
The opening section, the first of four, introduces each of these players and explains what led to them going into the businesses they have chosen. Among the various One True Cures are a laser salesman, a leech peddler, faith healers, a supplement seller, and a Mormon missionary that resurrects a long-dead theory about germs. There’s also a pair that develops a health drink; one of them is human, and one is not.
The author suggests that the success of these characters—and some of them have become wealthy beyond belief—has a good deal to do with the state of standard medical care in America. Nobody trusts Big Pharma. The disparity of what treatments we can expect is so great that in one New York hospital, there’s a wait time in the ER of nearly 6 hours for most people, whereas the wealthy can get a private room with high thread count sheets and a butler. One can see why many people conclude that anything must be better than this; yet, they are mistaken.
Apart from his sterling research and documentation, and his clear, conversational tone that at times caused me to forget, momentarily, that I was reading nonfiction, the thing that sets Hongoltz-Hetling apart from others is his ability to shift seamlessly from prose that is falling-down-funny, to that which is not only serious, but tragic, without ever breaking the boundaries of good taste. Because he did it so brilliantly in his last book, I watched for it this time—and I still couldn’t catch the segue way from one to the other.
Because I had fallen behind in my nonfiction reviews, I checked out the audio version from Seattle Bibliocommons and listened to it while I watered my plants. It is very well done, and I had no problem following the thread. The only downside is that the printed version has some humorous puns by way of spelling that the listener misses.
One way or the other, get this book and read it, even if the topic isn’t inside your usual field of interest. Highly recommended to everyone.
The fact is, I have—or I had—no particular interest in alternative medicine, but I had read Hongoltz-Hetling’s last book, A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear, which was well researched, well written, and most importantly, completely hilarious. I have reviewed over 800 books, but the number of those that I later purchase is smaller than 10; yet I bought that book to give as a Christmas gift. So when I saw that he had another book available, I didn’t hesitate. And I wasn’t disappointed.
The book describes the bizarre programs and treatments espoused by six individuals: Larry Lytle, Toby McAdam, Robert O. Young, Alicja Kolyszko, Dale and Leilani Neumann, and The Alien. The seventh player in each section is America, and that’s where we see what U.S. laws say, and what enforcement, if any, comes down on these snake oil salesmen.
The opening section, the first of four, introduces each of these players and explains what led to them going into the businesses they have chosen. Among the various One True Cures are a laser salesman, a leech peddler, faith healers, a supplement seller, and a Mormon missionary that resurrects a long-dead theory about germs. There’s also a pair that develops a health drink; one of them is human, and one is not.
The author suggests that the success of these characters—and some of them have become wealthy beyond belief—has a good deal to do with the state of standard medical care in America. Nobody trusts Big Pharma. The disparity of what treatments we can expect is so great that in one New York hospital, there’s a wait time in the ER of nearly 6 hours for most people, whereas the wealthy can get a private room with high thread count sheets and a butler. One can see why many people conclude that anything must be better than this; yet, they are mistaken.
Apart from his sterling research and documentation, and his clear, conversational tone that at times caused me to forget, momentarily, that I was reading nonfiction, the thing that sets Hongoltz-Hetling apart from others is his ability to shift seamlessly from prose that is falling-down-funny, to that which is not only serious, but tragic, without ever breaking the boundaries of good taste. Because he did it so brilliantly in his last book, I watched for it this time—and I still couldn’t catch the segue way from one to the other.
Because I had fallen behind in my nonfiction reviews, I checked out the audio version from Seattle Bibliocommons and listened to it while I watered my plants. It is very well done, and I had no problem following the thread. The only downside is that the printed version has some humorous puns by way of spelling that the listener misses.
One way or the other, get this book and read it, even if the topic isn’t inside your usual field of interest. Highly recommended to everyone.
May 2, 2023
If It Sounds Like a Quack by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling is an interesting deep dive into several cases where people truly believed they had a, if not the, solution to health problems but not only didn't but caused more harm than good and opened the door for themselves and/or others to monetarily gain from preying (or praying) on those in need of help, not exploitation.
These various case studies do all work toward a closer look at how and why a healthy skepticism has, in today's society, turned into largely irrational refusal to even look at facts if they are science-based. If you can't take criticism, even genuine criticism that seeks to understand, you may find fault with some of his comments. To the point you may even misread (intentionally?) legitimate criticism as an attack on a religion as a whole. That, frankly, is a sign of your own insecurities in your belief system and not what is actually in the book. Same with taking offense to the political, as you see it, assessments about the current environment. If the vast majority of people with irrational fear masquerading as "informed doubt" happen to be from one side of the political spectrum, then that is simply how it is, it shouldn't trigger you to read that, you know, since you're so "informed."
I will warn potential readers that Hongoltz-Hetling does use humor, some of it snarky, in telling this story. I know some people don't want anything except the Dragnet approach, just the facts, so be warned if snark bothers you. I happen to not mind since it doesn't get in the way of the presentation of the research and, frankly, just emphasizes the absurdity of so much of it.
I would recommend this to most readers with both a sense of humor and a curious mind. Some who are insecure in their beliefs, whether they be political and/or religious, may find ways to play victim reading this, so you'll probably like it also since that is your favorite pastime.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
These various case studies do all work toward a closer look at how and why a healthy skepticism has, in today's society, turned into largely irrational refusal to even look at facts if they are science-based. If you can't take criticism, even genuine criticism that seeks to understand, you may find fault with some of his comments. To the point you may even misread (intentionally?) legitimate criticism as an attack on a religion as a whole. That, frankly, is a sign of your own insecurities in your belief system and not what is actually in the book. Same with taking offense to the political, as you see it, assessments about the current environment. If the vast majority of people with irrational fear masquerading as "informed doubt" happen to be from one side of the political spectrum, then that is simply how it is, it shouldn't trigger you to read that, you know, since you're so "informed."
I will warn potential readers that Hongoltz-Hetling does use humor, some of it snarky, in telling this story. I know some people don't want anything except the Dragnet approach, just the facts, so be warned if snark bothers you. I happen to not mind since it doesn't get in the way of the presentation of the research and, frankly, just emphasizes the absurdity of so much of it.
I would recommend this to most readers with both a sense of humor and a curious mind. Some who are insecure in their beliefs, whether they be political and/or religious, may find ways to play victim reading this, so you'll probably like it also since that is your favorite pastime.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
May 14, 2023
This sarcastic survey of the fringes of alternative medicine is often funny and sometimes frightening. The author explores how wacko, unscientific medical theories have gained widespread acceptance in the United States. These include zombie cures, prayer healing, leeches and much more. The snake oil salesmen and women cooperated fully with the author in many cases, sharing stories of how they came to be such great healers (e.g. one guy came from the Andromeda galaxy), and even their failures (e.g. multiple criminal convictions and court orders that didn't stop them from pushing their wares or their miracle cure sessions at luxury spas and luxury prices). The FDA fights these quacks valiantly, but the book explores how certain political elements (e.g. an unnamed "former game show host" who became president as the book phrases it) have fought to keep them on the market. I was surprised to find out how invested that political element is in the "alternative medicine" (i.e. alternative TO medicine) industry. Certain senators I won't name sell their mailing lists to the snake oil salesmen according to the book. They also receive hefty campaign contributions from them. I can't verify that, so I presume such details come from financial disclosure forms. The whole industry has merged with antivax and conspiracy believers in general.
Personally I don't have a beef against the antivax and alternative medicine folks. I see it as natural selection in action. If they're right, they'll survive at higher rates than those of us who believe in actual medicine. If they're wrong, they'll be the ones dying off at higher rates. In either case, the gene pool is improved by definition. So far the statistics suggest by about 9 to 1 that they're doing most of the dying. I have a healthy skepticism about medical doctors, too, since too many are clearly focused more on making money than healing or helping patients. So, choose your poison and drink up. Back to the book: the writing is too snide to be all that enjoyable, but the content is too delicious not to give it a high rating.
Personally I don't have a beef against the antivax and alternative medicine folks. I see it as natural selection in action. If they're right, they'll survive at higher rates than those of us who believe in actual medicine. If they're wrong, they'll be the ones dying off at higher rates. In either case, the gene pool is improved by definition. So far the statistics suggest by about 9 to 1 that they're doing most of the dying. I have a healthy skepticism about medical doctors, too, since too many are clearly focused more on making money than healing or helping patients. So, choose your poison and drink up. Back to the book: the writing is too snide to be all that enjoyable, but the content is too delicious not to give it a high rating.
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June 19, 2025Amerykański system często może sprzyjać takim abstrakcjom jak leczenie laserem, produkowanie własnych suplementów czy tworzenie „magicznych� środków, które rzekomo leczą wszystko. Hongoltz-Hetling w swoim reportażu przedstawia wachlarz różnorodnych postaci. Mamy tu mormona, niedoszłego kandydata na gubernatora, Polkę, a także amatorów tworzenia medykamentów zarówno tych przyjmowanych doustnie, jak i „duchowych�. Autor w każdej z czterech części poświęca danej postaci jeden rozdział. Jest to specyficzne rozwiązanie, które może momentami przeszkadzać, ale temat jest na tyle wciągający, że ostatecznie można na to przymknąć oko.
Wydaje mi się, że każda z opisanych historii może być na swój sposób uderzająca. Z jednej strony dziwi naiwność klientów, z drugiej widzimy postępujące szaleństwo twórców tych „metod leczniczych�. Uwierzą we wszystko, co sobie wmówią, niezależnie od tego, czy chodzi o nieistniejący przekaz od Elona Muska, czy przekonanie, że można wyleczyć własne dziecko modlitwą, bez choćby konsultacji z lekarzem.
Autor co prawda nie zagłębia się w temat do końca, przedstawia jedynie sylwetki wybranych postaci, jednak warto zastanowić się nad głębszą, systemową przyczyną tego zjawiska. Dlaczego ludzie wierzą takim osobom i dają się złapać w pułapkę ich słów? Dlaczego postrzegają lekarzy jako skorumpowanych, powiązanych z międzynarodowymi firmami farmaceutycznymi, i wierzą, że przez szczepienia staną się zombie? Tym bardziej zastanawia fakt, że wolnościowcy, antysystemowcy i inni podobni ludzie łykają suplementy i nieprzebadane specyfiki bez opamiętania, ale gdy przychodzi do farmakologii lub szczepień twierdzą, że będą przez to świecić na zielono.
Ta abstrakcja powoli zaczyna przenikać także do naszej rzeczywistości, choć mam nadzieję, że powodów do napisania podobnego reportażu z polskiej perspektywy będzie jak najmniej.
Wydaje mi się, że każda z opisanych historii może być na swój sposób uderzająca. Z jednej strony dziwi naiwność klientów, z drugiej widzimy postępujące szaleństwo twórców tych „metod leczniczych�. Uwierzą we wszystko, co sobie wmówią, niezależnie od tego, czy chodzi o nieistniejący przekaz od Elona Muska, czy przekonanie, że można wyleczyć własne dziecko modlitwą, bez choćby konsultacji z lekarzem.
Autor co prawda nie zagłębia się w temat do końca, przedstawia jedynie sylwetki wybranych postaci, jednak warto zastanowić się nad głębszą, systemową przyczyną tego zjawiska. Dlaczego ludzie wierzą takim osobom i dają się złapać w pułapkę ich słów? Dlaczego postrzegają lekarzy jako skorumpowanych, powiązanych z międzynarodowymi firmami farmaceutycznymi, i wierzą, że przez szczepienia staną się zombie? Tym bardziej zastanawia fakt, że wolnościowcy, antysystemowcy i inni podobni ludzie łykają suplementy i nieprzebadane specyfiki bez opamiętania, ale gdy przychodzi do farmakologii lub szczepień twierdzą, że będą przez to świecić na zielono.
Ta abstrakcja powoli zaczyna przenikać także do naszej rzeczywistości, choć mam nadzieję, że powodów do napisania podobnego reportażu z polskiej perspektywy będzie jak najmniej.
March 25, 2024
Where to begin with this book? I guess I’ll start by saying it’s a great book if you’re interested in learning about the BS medicine that grifters have pushed over the years. In this book, the author focuses on a handful of people who have pushed insane medicinal treatments like laser beams, potentially dangerous substances, leeches, and more as the “one true cure�.
Prior to picking up this book, I thought it’d be more about the people who fall for this stuff and allow these grifters to make millions, but it mainly focuses on the grifters. That’s less interesting to me, but the author did a good job keeping me engaged. It was pretty interesting learning about the actual people pushing their pseudoscientific medicines because they may not actually be grifters. You start to realize that many of these people have drunk their own Kool-Aid and actually believe they have the “one true cure�.
The book hits on some excellent points as well. First, the author discusses how the medical and pharmaceutical industry has corrupted our government, and so it’s understandable why people don’t trust medicine and turn to these quacks. Then, the book ends on an excellent note explaining why this stuff matters and how scary it is. He discusses the legitimate real-world consequences of people not only falling for this fake medicine but also the conspiracies that come along with it, such as people literally believing people are being turned into flesh-eating zombies.
Prior to picking up this book, I thought it’d be more about the people who fall for this stuff and allow these grifters to make millions, but it mainly focuses on the grifters. That’s less interesting to me, but the author did a good job keeping me engaged. It was pretty interesting learning about the actual people pushing their pseudoscientific medicines because they may not actually be grifters. You start to realize that many of these people have drunk their own Kool-Aid and actually believe they have the “one true cure�.
The book hits on some excellent points as well. First, the author discusses how the medical and pharmaceutical industry has corrupted our government, and so it’s understandable why people don’t trust medicine and turn to these quacks. Then, the book ends on an excellent note explaining why this stuff matters and how scary it is. He discusses the legitimate real-world consequences of people not only falling for this fake medicine but also the conspiracies that come along with it, such as people literally believing people are being turned into flesh-eating zombies.
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May 6, 2023Hongoltz-Hetling has some surprises in this look at the darkside, even for someone like me who spends a lot of time educating patients on why this or that SCAM (So-Called Alternate Medicine) is not helping or worse, making conditions more severe.
One thing that is never emphasized enough is that most large hospital systems and big name institues like Johns Hopkins, Cleveland Clinic, Mayo, etc have, each and every one of them, embraced woo while calling it "complimentary" or "Alternate Medicine". These are not the frignes: this is mainstream, and it's harming healthcare overall, people's trust in healthcare, and the efficacy and outcomes of treatment.
While the snake oil in this well written compendium of the wack is dramatic, the woo sold to patients in the clinics and hospital units of once-respected, former-science based medicine is unproven woo like reiki and other disproven (and no mechanism of action) "energy medicine", essential oil wizardry, "healing touch" where thougths are thought over a patient who is never touched, and even junk like "homeopathic (no active ingredients, just the memory of same) medicine".
But the point is, this is why patients are quick to believe a quack on the fringes of American Medicine: Mayo and Cleveland Clinic and their local hospital taught them to.
One thing that is never emphasized enough is that most large hospital systems and big name institues like Johns Hopkins, Cleveland Clinic, Mayo, etc have, each and every one of them, embraced woo while calling it "complimentary" or "Alternate Medicine". These are not the frignes: this is mainstream, and it's harming healthcare overall, people's trust in healthcare, and the efficacy and outcomes of treatment.
While the snake oil in this well written compendium of the wack is dramatic, the woo sold to patients in the clinics and hospital units of once-respected, former-science based medicine is unproven woo like reiki and other disproven (and no mechanism of action) "energy medicine", essential oil wizardry, "healing touch" where thougths are thought over a patient who is never touched, and even junk like "homeopathic (no active ingredients, just the memory of same) medicine".
But the point is, this is why patients are quick to believe a quack on the fringes of American Medicine: Mayo and Cleveland Clinic and their local hospital taught them to.
May 18, 2023
I've witnessed some fringe medicine actually work and I know that there are some practitioners out there that are actually doing good and care about those they're helping, but the side of fringe medicine talked about in this book terrifies me. It's all the people who have convinced thousands to eschew real medicine and science in favor of miracle cures and unproven (most times deadly) snake oil tonics with no proof of working other than one person's ability to charm people into believing them or use pseudo-intelligent talk to make them think they're talking sense. The most interesting thing is though, that at least how they're presented here, most of them started out with noble intentions and just fell deeper and deeper into it and lost sight of the horrors they're perpetuating.
There is no doubt whatsoever where Hongoltz-Hetling stands and what he thinks of the 'so-called one cure', but you can also tell that he did his best to show both sides of the story and try to stick to the facts, such as they are. I'm pretty sure there's going to be a segment of readers who get mad about how he writes about certain individuals and his very frank opinions on situations, then again, I'm pretty sure those people won't be at all interested in reading fact-checked evidence of how crazy they sound.
Very happy thanks to NetGalley and PublicAffairs for the eye-opening read!
There is no doubt whatsoever where Hongoltz-Hetling stands and what he thinks of the 'so-called one cure', but you can also tell that he did his best to show both sides of the story and try to stick to the facts, such as they are. I'm pretty sure there's going to be a segment of readers who get mad about how he writes about certain individuals and his very frank opinions on situations, then again, I'm pretty sure those people won't be at all interested in reading fact-checked evidence of how crazy they sound.
Very happy thanks to NetGalley and PublicAffairs for the eye-opening read!
July 22, 2023
Every time I think people can't be any more stupid, they find a way to surprise me. If It Sounds Like A Quack is a book by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling that explores medical quackery in the United States of America. It exposes the foolish notions of fringe medicine and how those people use people's naivety.
The scariest thing about any book of this type is when it covers people who aren't in an asylum and are free to vote. Trust me, if the pharmaceutical industry found a cure for cancer, they wouldn't keep that to themselves. Do you know how much money you could make with that? It's unnerving to meet a person with an otherwise ordinary mien who suddenly starts talking about medicines that make zombies.
So, from brackish water to healing energies, all different people think they have the next medical panacea. I've heard of a lot of these "cures" before. My great-grandfather was a Christian Scientist. He was in a cult that believed in the healing power of prayer. It was ridiculous. Soon, my great-grandfather became seriously ill because of an enlarged heart. Oh, they prayed for him, but it did nothing. So my great-grandmother told him to go to the doctor or else, and they removed 100 lbs or 45.359237kgs of fluid from his body.
Thanks for reading my review, and see you next time.
The scariest thing about any book of this type is when it covers people who aren't in an asylum and are free to vote. Trust me, if the pharmaceutical industry found a cure for cancer, they wouldn't keep that to themselves. Do you know how much money you could make with that? It's unnerving to meet a person with an otherwise ordinary mien who suddenly starts talking about medicines that make zombies.
So, from brackish water to healing energies, all different people think they have the next medical panacea. I've heard of a lot of these "cures" before. My great-grandfather was a Christian Scientist. He was in a cult that believed in the healing power of prayer. It was ridiculous. Soon, my great-grandfather became seriously ill because of an enlarged heart. Oh, they prayed for him, but it did nothing. So my great-grandmother told him to go to the doctor or else, and they removed 100 lbs or 45.359237kgs of fluid from his body.
Thanks for reading my review, and see you next time.
November 3, 2023
This was an excellent book, well-written with a sense of humor about a very scary, disturbing topic. I never realized how many truly dangerous nutjobs there were (and still are) who are selling modern versions of snake oil. These whackos have subverted health care and have gotten high-ranking Republicans idiots, including the FGSH (Former Game Show Host), to push their agendas and their products, like bleach and hydroxychloroquine to fight COVID. I didn't know the quacks now hide behind the right-wing term "medical freedom" to defend their rights to sell useless, ineffective, and even dangerous concoctions. On page 163 of the hardcover edition, the author said "Roughly one in two hundred Americans who boarded an international flight did so to receive health care in places like Costa Rica, often getting treatments that would be illegal in the US." Our son, who was desperate to save himself from the ravages of ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease), went to a shady, unclean "stem cell clinic" in New York twice, then to a different shady, dirty "stem cell clinic" in Costa Rica twice. He spent around $70,000 - $75,000 on travel, hotels, food, and "treatments", but had nothing to show for it. Our son used homeopathic infusions, and useless supplements. Our son died in October 2o21 from ALS. I highly recommend this book.
September 13, 2023
I've had some 5-star reads in 2023, but I'd give this book more if I could. It's a fascinating and infuriating book about fringe medical cure claims in the U.S., culminating in the horrifying way in which the "game show host" and his sham administration--and other administrations too--have been influenced by religious extremists (who think prayer will cure people, including children), medical-freedom libertarians (who think anyone should be able to offer any kind of "treatment" thought up and bottled in their garage), and anti-vaccine idiots (who...you know what they do).
There are four separate parts, each with six chapters about different fringe ideas and the people who came up with them, and one chapter about how these ideas affected healthcare and government regulations. Part Four deals with the most recent years and it will make you mad. And hopefully determined to not remain silent going forward. Our scientific/medical community needs our full support to fight this insane extremism and we don't have time to quibble about "freedom" to brainwash people to accept the One True Cure until it leads them to their grave.
Well . . . the Leech Lady's not too bad. But gross.
Seriously, read this book!
There are four separate parts, each with six chapters about different fringe ideas and the people who came up with them, and one chapter about how these ideas affected healthcare and government regulations. Part Four deals with the most recent years and it will make you mad. And hopefully determined to not remain silent going forward. Our scientific/medical community needs our full support to fight this insane extremism and we don't have time to quibble about "freedom" to brainwash people to accept the One True Cure until it leads them to their grave.
Well . . . the Leech Lady's not too bad. But gross.
Seriously, read this book!
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