Snake oil can refer to a legitimate product made from Chinese water snakes, but it’s also a derogatory term for products claiming to cure ailments that don’t work. Snake oil salesmen were once common in the US and UK, selling silver bullet cures for any disease. Real snake oil from China has health benefits, but finding it can be difficult. Today, calling someone a snake oil salesman means they’re good at selling worthless items. Some non-traditional remedies are helpful, but should always be taken under a doctor’s care. Snake oil peddlers are often featured in Western movies. The placebo effect can make people feel better about a product, even if it’s worthless.
Snake oil is both a legitimate product made from oil from Chinese water snakes and a derogatory term for a variety of products that claim to cure ailments but don’t. The snake oil salesman, once a common feature in the US and UK, was a person who sold silver bullet cures for any disease. Originally, the oil came from China where it is still used as a medicinal treatment to treat inflammation and arthritic conditions.
Oil that really comes from a snake may actually have some health benefits, especially when it’s made from the Chinese water snake. It is commonly found in pharmacies throughout China and is used as a topical treatment for joint pain. Contains high levels of certain essential fatty acids which have been shown to reduce inflammation. Unfortunately, finding it can be a chore. Rattlesnake oil is available in the United States, but tends to have only about a third of the fatty acids that Chinese oil contains. Fish oil would be a better choice.
As a peddler he sold snake oil all over Britain, where it was first patented in the 18th century and in the United States, it was noted that most didn’t sell the real thing. Many products that purportedly had oils from the Chinese water snake contained none, and instead were blends of camphor, some form of fat (often beef), and alcohol. The unsavory reputation of these vendors has started to gather steam since most of the people who have bought the stuff have found no benefit in using it.
Today, calling someone a snake oil salesman may be another way of saying that the person is especially good at selling worthless items. There is something cowardly and unreliable about these people, although this opinion is not shared in China where real snake oil can be easily purchased. Sometimes in the US, all homeopathic remedies are dismissed by this term, which is a generalization. Some non-traditional remedies are helpful and have value, although taking them should always be done under a doctor’s care.
Traveling snake oil peddlers are often a feature of films set in the Old West. WC Fields played a fraudulent one in the 1936 movie Poppy. Numerous others were just stock characters populating Western movies. They are often portrayed as deliberately trying to deceive the public, although some people have had great faith in the promised results of their remedies.
As with any product, believing it works can produce results that have nothing to do with the actual product. Attitude about how a product works can make some people feel better, by evoking what is called the placebo effect. A good snake oil salesman might have such a level of quality sales that some people have benefited from worthless products. Therefore, the salesman often escaped being thrown out of the cities he visited. Alternatively, if he wasn’t so good, the clerk quickly moved on to the next town to avoid people demanding their money back or pressing for violent punishment.
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