Kenneth Glad
People have always gone to extraordinary lengths to achieve their ideal body shape. Long before modern wellness culture took over social media, society was already obsessed with quick fixes promising effortless results. Looking back through history reveals that the quest for slenderness often led down shockingly dangerous paths.
In the late nineteenth century, doctors in the United States experimented with toxic substances to accelerate weight loss. Physicians prescribed small daily doses of arsenic under the belief that it forced the body to burn off fat. American doctor Woods Hutchinson claimed in 1894 that “Arsenic disturbs the body’s normal metabolism, so large amounts of body fat are burned up and excreted.”
Patients swallowed these dangerous doses despite obvious risks, writes HistorieNet. Dropping a few pounds was worth the gamble.
By the 1940s, American doctors began prescribing colorful cocktail pills containing amphetamines, thyroid hormones, and laxatives. In 1967, physician R. C. Henry reported that “At least six deaths have been linked to the so-called rainbow pills.” A Senate investigation later tied them to more than 60 deaths before officials banned them.
Dangerous chemicals not the only trend
Some experts focused on unusual cleansing routines instead. In 1760, Scottish doctor Malcolm Flemyng suggested drinking soap dissolved in water, declaring that “Soap is a safe remedy against obesity and can be taken daily for years.”
According to HistorieNet, he specifically favored olive oil-based soaps. He believed they acted as a powerful diuretic to naturally flush out excess fat. The strange concept lingered for decades.
By the 1920s, companies sold products like La-Mar Reducing Soap. They promised to wash fat away in the bath without any diet or exercise, although US postal authorities eventually exposed the brand as a complete fraud in 1926.
Around 1900, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg used a different method at his famous Battle Creek Sanitarium. He administered four liters of yogurt as an enema, explaining that “The yogurt is taken through the mouth, the rest is injected into the rectum.”
He insisted this massive dose of bacteria would restore intestinal balance after an initial plain water flush. Patients endured these bizarre routines in pursuit of health.
Extreme diet barriers
Other historical methods tried to block food intake entirely. In 1977, medical journal The Lancet published a report by British doctor Susan Rodgers, who argued that “Wiring the jaws together is a simple and effective method.”
Doctors fastened thin steel wires around the back teeth to lock the mouth almost completely shut. This forced patients to survive strictly on liquid meals.
HistorieNet notes that 17 severely overweight patients underwent the restrictive procedure, dropping a median of 25.3 kilos over six months. Patients lost significant weight, but two thirds regained it as soon as the wires were removed.
These extreme historical examples prove weight loss shortcuts are nothing new. Today’s wellness culture might look completely different. Yet the history of these bizarre treatments shows that common sense is often the first casualty in the pursuit of a smaller waistline.
Sources: HistorieNet, The Lancet
