Radioactive quackery

Radioactive quackery refers to various products sold during the early 20th century, after the discovery of radioactivity, which promised radioactivity as a cure for various illnesses.^[1]

1 Notable examples
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

Notable examples

Radithor, a solution of radium salts, which was claimed by its developer William J. A. Bailey to have curative properties. The industrialist Eben Byers died from ingesting it.^[2]^[3]
Many brands of toothpaste were laced with radioactive substances that was claimed to make teeth shine whiter, such as Doramad Radioactive Toothpaste.^[4]
Bath and bathing waters were advertised as being "highly radioactive", e.g. in this report from 1912.
Revigator pots, which added radon to drinking water.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b Gray, Theodore (August 2004). "For That Healthy Glow, Drink Radiation!". Popular Science (Bonnier Corporation) 265 (2): 28. ISSN 0161-7370.
^ Journal of the American Medical Association (American Medical Association) 264 (1): 617.
^ Goldsmith, Barbara (2005). Obsessive Genius: The Inner World of Marie Curie. W. W. Norton & Company. pp. 119â120. ISBN 0-393-05137-4.
^ Matricon, Jean; Waysand, G. (2003). The Cold Wars: A History of Superconductivity. Rutgers University Press. p. 113. ISBN 0-813-53295-7.

External links

"Living with Radiation", book on the subject
Radioactive Quack Cures
L’histoire étonnante du Tho-Radia, by Thierry Lefebvre and Cécile Raynal (French)
Radioactive Quack Cures at the Museum of Oak Ridge Associated Universities

Radioactive quackery

Contents

Notable examples

See also

References

External links