Maybe They're Homeopathic

Tests on some top store brand herbal supplements showed that four out of five didn't contain any of the herbs shown on the label.

Among the attorney general’s findings was a popular store brand of ginseng pills at Walgreens, promoted for “physical endurance and vitality,” that contained only powdered garlic and rice. At Walmart, the authorities found that its ginkgo biloba, a Chinese plant promoted as a memory enhancer, contained little more than powdered radish, houseplants and wheat — despite a claim on the label that the product was wheat- and gluten-free.
Three out of six herbal products at Target — ginkgo biloba, St. John’s wort and valerian root, a sleep aid — tested negative for the herbs on their labels. But they did contain powdered rice, beans, peas and wild carrots. And at GNC, the agency said, it found pills with unlisted ingredients used as fillers, like powdered legumes, the class of plants that includes peanuts and soybeans, a hazard for people with allergies. 

Oh, Henry!

Researchers are suggesting that repeated injuries from jousting and other athletic activities may have caused Henry VIII to become erratic and violent.

The king whose erratic behavior (he executed two wives, one more than O.J. Simpson allegedly managed) is the subject of such works as “The Six Wives of Henry VIII” and “Wolf Hall” may have suffered from traumatic brain injury similar to CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy), the same brain injury Dr. Bennet Omalu discovered in the cadaver of Webster, a Hall of Famer, in 2002.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy can happen when there have been repeated hits to the head and the symptoms gradually become worse over time. Obviously we can't be certain if this was the cause of Henry's behavior, or, at least, one of the causes, since we can't go back in time and do an MRI to check out his brain, but it is an interesting theory.

Chobani Sells Ignorance

Or, at least they were trying to. Now they've been ordered to stop running ads that claim Dannon’s rival light Greek yogurt brand contains chlorine and is unsafe to eat.

Chobani’s commercials show a young woman lounging by a pool chair when she reaches for a cup of Dannon yogurt. A voiceover intones: “Dannon Light & Fit Greek actually uses artificial sweeteners like sucralose. Sucralose? Why? That stuff has chlorine added to it!”

Sucralose is manufactured by the selective chlorination of sucrose and Chobani is implying that this is the same as eating chlorine used in pools.

They have also advertised that Yoplait Greek 100 contains pesticide.

The TV spot prominently displays Yoplait Greek 100, with a woman examining the package. At this point a voiceover states, “Yoplait Greek 100 actually uses preservatives like potassium sorbate.”
The narration then continues, “Really?! That stuff is used to kill bugs!” During this exchange, the woman’s face is pinched in a look of disgust as she further examines the Yoplait container; she then flings the container into the garbage.

Is their yogurt so bad that they only way they can sell it is to try to demonize their competition?

Anti-GMO Fakers

An ongoing investigation at the University of Naples in Italy is looking into allegations that some studies of genetically modified crops included data that was manipulated to make it appear that the consumption of GMOs is harmful to mammals.

I'm shocked, shocked!