BBC reminds Dragons’ Den viewers not to put things in their ears
Even if everyone on TV is telling you to do it, that doesn't mean you should
Aux News Dragons' Den
In the classic animated series Home Movies, there’s an episode where kid-filmmaker Brendan has to make an educational video for kids about how you shouldn’t put marbles in your nose, but the video just ends up convincing more kids to put marbles in their noses. The BBC has now found itself in a similar situation after an entrepreneur on Dragons’ Den (the British version of the globally popular reality show format known as Shark Tank here in the U.S.) successfully sold a pitch for a product called “Acu Seeds”—a version of the Chinese “ear seeds” treatment that she claimed helps treat myalgic encephalomyelitis (also called chronic fatigue syndrome).
The Daily Mail says she sold it as a “DIY needle-free ear acupuncture for anxiety, migraines, hormonal issues, insomnia, weight loss, and more,” and she received an investment offer from all six of the show’s “Dragons.” She ultimately accepted about $63,000 in exchange for a 10 percent stake in the company. But, after the episode aired, the BBC began to receive complaints from an advocacy group called Action For ME that argued that—even if nobody was literally saying “this product cures this condition”—the way it was presented heavily implied that that was the case. The complaints said that they were concerned that people would come away believing the “unfounded claim that this form of alternative medicine can cure ME.”
Now, after temporarily taking the episode offline, the BBC has re-edited the segment and re-released the episode with a disclaimer (or a “clarification,” as the BBC puts it) saying that “Acu Seeds are not intended as a cure for any medical condition and advice should always be sought from a qualified healthcare provider about any health concerns.” (In other words, don’t just put things in your ear.)
Initially, the BBC defended the product’s inclusion in the show, noting that Dragons’ Den is an “entertainment programme which features products created by entrepreneurs but is not an endorsement of them.” That’s fair, sure, but it’s also a cheap excuse when you’re the one putting the thing on TV and your panel of investor-judges all try to throw their money at it—which is possibly why the BBC still felt the need to put this clarification on the episode.
In conclusion, don’t put things in your ear unless a doctor tells you to, even if some woman on British television says that it was really good for her when she put a thing in her ear and even if that woman gets about $63,000 for designing a product that is supposed to go in your ear. We know you’re thinking about it now, and we know you want to do it, but don’t.
17 Comments
A panel of rich people throwing money at ear seeds is just further proof that you don’t need to be smart to get rich, just lucky (and being a tad psychopathic helps too). As if Musk wasn’t showing this to us every day.There was an episode of the Canadian Dragon’s Den where they invested in basically a photo booth in maternity wards to get pictures of newborn babies. This was after smart phones were already widespread, so my jaw was agape at what a bad investment this was. But at least that didn’t involve bleeding sick people of their money as they potentially damage their hearing.
Or that they know people will fall for it.
Then again it’s no surprise ME ends up with a load of backstreet practitioners selling woo. I know through work it’s a very complex issue which is basically undiagnosable, but cross-specialty there is a general consensus that there is an enormous psycho-somatic element to it in the absence of clinical markers, which is often the case.
The self care market is “One Born Every Minute” exponentially exploded.Penn & Teller did a show a bit ago (think it was a cable exclusive before that was more of a prestige thing) called “Bullshit”, and one was on snake oil of various natures.They set up a booth at a megamall and (amongst the silliness) convinced people that letting snails wander over their face was a great “skin treatment”. Funny, haha, nobody would ever REALLY… do… tha…Fuck.
I mean…https://mcpress.mayoclinic.org/living-well/snail-mucin-for-skincare/It seems like there’s some evidence for it.
“…for anxiety, migraines, hormonal issues, insomnia, weight loss, and more.”I 100% guarantee you that anything that claims to do that many unrelated things is snake oil.
I think what blurs the line a little is that some things do have a lot of or unexpected uses, that just happen to be connected in unintuitive ways (eg. antidepressants for ibs, ibuprofen for basically everything).It’s hard to fault people for not being versed in pharmacology; the real issue is that scammers are allowed and encouraged to run rampant like this.
That’s the problem with chronic fatigue syndrome, it’s all ME ME ME
If I had the energy to argue you on this , I would.
What do they say about putting salt in their eyes?
Looks like the Woke Police are here to tell us what we can and can’t put into our ears.
Don’t Tread on My Ears.
I’mma put my Tide Pods in my ears to make me hear more cleanly!
WHAT?
“Like acupuncture with none of the needles but all of the pseudoscience!”
Don’t put marbles in your nose Put them in there do not put them in there
I got a Home Movies notification for this?I suppose next your gonna tell me to “Don’t kill children, don’t run them over.”