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Porridge For Spammer

by | 5th, November 2004

‘ANYONE who was at school in Britain during the 1970s and 1980s will read the Guardian’s headline, ”US Court Jails Man For Spam Racket”, with great glee.

Delete from your menu

It is high time someone got punished for inflicting such gastronomic torture on defenceless children.

And what a racket it was! Passing off what looked (and indeed tasted) for all the world like the inner sole of a shoe as a nutritional alternative to food took some doing.

But we digress – we return to the Times to relate the story of how the NHS spends £23m every year on a drug that is effectively a placebo.

Atenonol is the most common beta-blocker drug in use in the UK, but new research shows that not only does it not block betas, but it lets alphas and gammas get through as well.

It is, say Swedish scientists, no better than placebo pills at preventing heart attacks and strokes.

Not only is it that much more expensive than, say Tic-Tacs, it doesn’t even leave you with a nice minty breath.’



Posted: 5th, November 2004 | In: Uncategorized Comment | TrackBack | Permalink