Elderly duped by fake cures for real diseases
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Just like most of the more aged members of our society, my mom is addicted to healthcare products and devices. She relies so heavily on these products in the hope of curing hypertension and hyperlipemia, two common chronic diseases that constantly obsess her. She spends almost all of her retirement pension on them.
I've been really dazzled by what she's bought. She sleeps on a so-called jade cushion that is worth 2,800 yuan ($428) and has the function of "clearing blood," as claimed by the promoters. Every night she wears a 3,600-yuan laser watch for an hour to lower her blood lipid content and restrain her arteriosclerosis. And it takes her at least one hour every day to sit on a chair linked to an electronic therapy apparatus (cost: over 13,000 yuan), which claims to have the function of improving blood by releasing negative ions to accelerate the vibration of blood cells.
I'm aware that my description of these devices sounds unscientific and unconvincing. I know little about the treatment principles behind them, for all I know is what my mother tells me. But when I questioned whether she was cheated, my mom's excuse was that those devices are high-tech products – the more their working principles are beyond our understanding, the more superior and advanced they are!
Why do the elderly spend so much on buying pieces of crap one after another that all have similar functions? After I attended one recent promotion with my mom for an X-brand capsule that could "cure" hypertension and hyperlipemia, everything suddenly turned clear.
The promotion was held in the senior activity center of our residential area. It began with an introduction of the capsule, during which the speaker was trying her best to illustrate how "natural" the capsule is and the "magic and quick fixes" it will bring in days. Then it was showtime, as several alleged beneficiaries of the capsule started to share their magical and moving experiences.
One woman as old as my mom made the most moving speech. In the context of the recent Tomb-Sweeping Day, she memorialized her father who died of acute myocardial infarction caused by hypertension and hyperlipemia and vividly recalled how her father was tortured by the diseases. She later developed the diseases herself but ended up with a new, happy and healthy life thanks to the magic capsule.
After the speeches, every attendant received a free blood pressure and blood lipid test – to reveal, perhaps unsurprisingly, all of them suffering from hypertension and hyperlipemia.
The salespeople for the promotion treated the elders warmly and passionately, calling them "mama" and "papa," patiently listening to their painful stories and seizing the opportunity to exaggerate their worries.
Finally, almost all the attendants, including my mom, bought capsules worth 300-500 yuan. I tried to stop her, but she refuted me, telling me that she can use her own money however she wants. All eyes turned on me, as if I were an undutiful child.
Now it is less difficult to understand why my mom and other old people easily surrender to those promoters. Their techniques are simple but effective – hyping their "high-tech" or "natural" health products or devices, exaggerating the dangers that the elderly face and warming their hearts with feigned but emotionally charged words.
However, many forget the shocking case in 2007 when more than 50 people, mostly over 50 years old, died or suffered worsening physical conditions because they were so addicted to health products and refused to go to hospitals for treatment.
Aging is a serious problem in China. The rapidly increasing elderly population means increased demand for health products and devices.
However, hoping to find a cure for what ails them, the elderly often fall victim to products and devices that do nothing more than cheat them out of their money, steer them away from useful, proven treatments and possibly do more bodily harm than good.
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