CHAPTER VII.
KIDNEY MEDICINES.
This group of nostrums consists of those which are put forward for the cure of kidney troubles, or conditions of ill-health commonly, but as a rule erroneously, attributed by the public to kidney disease. Several of these are in the form of pills, while others are liquids. The two principal drugs employed are oil of juniper and potassium nitrate (nitre or saltpetre), separately or together; in some cases aperients are added. Altogether extravagant claims are made for some of the articles, as is usual, of course, with proprietary medicines; this point is dealt with more fully in the descriptions of individual preparations.
In analysing complex mixtures, such as some of these nostrums are, it is, of course, not possible to attain the same precision as when dealing with medicines which consist chiefly of inorganic salts, as in the case of nostrums for epilepsy, dealt with in another chapter. A vegetable extract containing no definite active principle, such as, for instance, extract of taraxacum (dandelion), cannot be identified by any direct test; if such an extract is mixed with another, with a powdered drug, or an essential oil, its identification with perfect certainty may become almost impossible. The large variations, again, which may occur in the proportion of solid matter in a tincture or infusion, as well as the variations in the relative proportion of the different constituents of drugs, prevent the results of analysis being translated with certainty into the formula from which the mixture was compounded. These considerations apply to several of the articles described in this chapter. While the principal ingredient or ingredients in each case can be ascertained with little or no possibility of error, the subsidiary ingredients in some cases cannot be determined with the same confidence; we have endeavoured to indicate in each case the possibility of such minor errors. Full use has been made of check methods, by compounding mixtures according to the formulæ obtained by analysis and comparing them with the originals.
DOAN’S BACKACHE KIDNEY PILLS.
These pills, of American origin, which have been very extensively advertised for some years, are sold in boxes price 2s. 9d., containing 40 “kidney pills” and 4 “dinner pills.”
They were described on the wrapper of the package as a
Specific for kidney complaints and all diseases arising from disorder of the kidneys and bladder. Cure Backache, Weak Back, Rheumatism, Diabetes, Congestion of the Kidneys, Inflammation of the bladder, Gravel, Bright’s Disease, Scalding Urine, and all Urinary troubles.
A circular was enclosed with the box, in which a dissertation on “Diseases of the Kidneys and Bladder” was given, together with directions for taking the pills for various complaints. The following extracts are taken from the circular:
Doan’s Backache Kidney Pills are composed of rare and valuable medicinal agents in a combination best adapted to the speedy relief and cure of Kidney Disease, urinary and bladder affections, and all diseases resulting therefrom. They are purely vegetable, containing no ingredients of a deleterious nature, and may be taken by the most delicate person, with every confidence of their giving quick and permanent relief, without any after ill effects ... they are the only medicine known that quickly relieves and permanently cures.
This medicine has restored to health thousands of women. As a means of healing the kidneys, and as a tonic to the whole female constitution it is unequalled.
The last sentence of the next extract shows some ingenuity:
Chronic cases of long standing. These frequently come under our notice and we hear that the patient, after trying every known remedy and failed (_sic_) has despaired of ever getting relief. Now in all stages of Kidney Disease this is where Doan’s Backache Kidney Pills are the most needed, and, indeed, are the only remedy possible to give permanent relief. But it takes time. One cannot expect to be cured in a few weeks.... In some cases three or four boxes of Doan’s Backache Kidney Pills are sufficient; but in these cases of long standing, 8, 10, and even 20 or 30, are required to effect a cure. But they will cure in the end if the patient perseveres. We are emphatic on this point, because in kidney disease patients are so easily discouraged. It is one of the symptoms of the disease.
The directions were to take from two to four of the dinner pills at night before commencing to take the kidney pills; then to begin with one kidney pill after each meal and one at bedtime, increasing the dose to two or three, after a short time. For children under 8, the dose was given as half a pill after each meal and at bedtime.
The “kidney pills” were ovoid in shape, and of a brown-grey colour externally, with sugar-coating beneath the thin, coloured layer; after removing the coating, the average weight of the pills was about 2 grains. Analysis showed them to contain oil of juniper and (in spite of their “purely vegetable” nature) potassium nitrate, together with a considerable proportion of a resinous substance, and of powdered fenugreek seeds and wheat and maize starches. Examination of the resin showed it to be derived from a coniferous source, and on comparison with various coniferous resins it agreed in characters with that of _Abies canadensis_ (_Pinus canadensis_), known as hemlock pitch. The proportions of the different ingredients were determined by analysis; but oil of juniper, in such small quantity, can only be approximately determined, and the amount found was confirmed by comparison of a pill containing this quantity with the pill under examination. The following formula gives a similar pill:
Oil of juniper 1 drop. Hemlock pitch 10 grains. Potassium nitrate 5 ” Powdered fenugreek 17 ” Wheat flour 4 ” Maize starch 2 ” In twenty pills.
The estimated cost of the materials of the 40 kidney pills and 4 dinner pills, ½d.
The dinner pills, of which four were included in the box of kidney pills, are also supplied separately in boxes of 50 for 1s. 1½d. The label stated that:
Doan’s Dinner Pills Cure Constipation, Sick Headache, Biliousness, Dizziness, and all deranged conditions of Stomach, Liver, and Bowels.
The directions were:
For adults, 1 to 3 Pills; for children, ½ to 1 Pill.
These statements and directions were amplified in a handbill enclosed in the package.
The pills were ovoid and enclosed in white sugar-coating; the average weight of one, without coating, was about ¾ gr. Analysis showed the presence of podophyllin, aloin, oil of peppermint, a resin that appeared to be jalap resin, cayenne, liquorice, gum, maize starch, and a small quantity of an extract that resembled extract of henbane; as the extract last named had no sufficiently well-marked characters to enable a small quantity of it to be distinguished perfectly when mixed with larger quantities of the other drugs named, the identity of this ingredient could not be completely established. The following formula gives a similar pill:
Oil of peppermint 1 drop. Podophyllin 3·8 grains. Aloin 6·9 ” Jalap resin 0·8 grain. Powdered capsicum 0·5 ” ” liquorice 0·6 ” Maize starch 0·5 ” Acacia gum 1·5 grains. Extract of henbane 1·5 ” In twenty pills.
Estimated cost of materials of 50 pills, 1d.
DODD’S KIDNEY PILLS.
These pills, made by an American Company advertising from a London address, are sold in boxes containing 35, price 2s. 9d.
The label round the box stated:
A positive cure for all kidney diseases: cures rheumatism, Bright’s disease, diabetes, backache; cures female weakness, purifies the blood, cleanses the system.
The following extracts are from a circular enclosed with the pills:
Experience has proved that Dodd’s Kidney Pills are the only cure for kidney diseases.
Dodd’s Kidney Pills is the only remedy that has cured Bright’s Disease.
Diabetes—Dodd’s Kidney Pills will cure this disease.
Dropsy—The first object in treating dropsy is to restore the kidneys to their normal condition. This is what Dodd’s Kidney Pills do and hence their peculiar efficacy for this disease.
Dodd’s Kidney Pills will cure any form of heart disease.
What is known as the “change of life,” is a period of great importance to woman. At such a time, no remedy could be more effective than Dodd’s Kidney Pills.
These pills ... consist of the active principles of vegetable substances, which have been carefully studied by the discoverer of the remedy, both as to their nature and effect, and finally given to the world in the form of a sugar-coated pill, which to-day is universally acknowledged to be the best kidney remedy obtainable.
The directions are:
Take one to three pills morning, noon, and night, before or after meals. In the majority of cases one pill is a dose.
The pills were ovoid in shape, coated and coloured red on the outside. The colouring matter formed a strongly fluorescent yellow solution, showing it to be fluorescein or an allied substance; the coating was of sugar on the outside, with an inner layer consisting of chalk. In spite of the statement quoted above, that the pills consist of the active principles of vegetable substances, it was no surprise to find that the principal ingredient was potassium nitrate, of which each contained about 1 gr.; the other constituents were sodium bicarbonate, soap, hard paraffin, wheat flour, powdered turmeric, two resins respectively soluble and insoluble in ether, a small quantity of a bitter substance, and a little extractive. Examination of the resins showed that they agreed in their characters with the two constituents of jalap resin; the bitter substance was not alkaloidal, and after careful comparison with a large number of bitter principles was found to agree with that of cascarilla. The following formula gives a pill which is practically identical with the one under examination:
Extract of cascarilla (alcoholic) 0·15 grain. Jalap resin 0·3 ” Hard soap 1·0 ” Potassium nitrate 1·0 ” Sodium bicarbonate 0·85 ” Hard paraffin 0·5 ” Turmeric 0·3 ” Wheat flour 0·8 ” In one pill.
The estimated cost of the materials of 35 pills is 1d.
DR. VAR’S AMERICAN KIDNEY PILLS.
On the outside of the package these pills, which are advertised from an address in a town in the south of England, and sold in boxes of 14 costing 1s. 1½d., are stated to “correct the stomach and stimulate the liver and kidneys.” In a circular enclosed with the box they are referred to as “Certain Corrective! Positive Cure!” while the obscurity of the following is perhaps intended to make the warning conveyed more effective:
Do not let slight or severe Kidney Disorders develop into Cancerous Decay, Twin Complaints—Kidney Liver Diseases. Cure them! Put both in strong active order. There is not a safer, surer, speedier remedy in existence. Myriads of people thank Providence for Dr. Var’s Kidney Pills. _Should be taken for Natural Weak Kidneys._
The directions are:
One to be taken three times a day after meals.
The “pills” were in reality flexible capsules, each containing about 5½ grains of a soft mass in which oils of juniper and peppermint could be recognized in small quantity; examination also showed the presence of potassium nitrate, of small quantities of iron and magnesium compounds, and of lycopodium,[1] together with powdered squill, wheat starch, and a “green” extract, containing a trace of alkaloid, which appeared from its characters to be a mixture of extracts of henbane and taraxacum. The iron was perhaps an accidental impurity, and the magnesia and lycopodium were probably added to assist in making up the mass and not for therapeutic effect. The following formula gives a similar mass:
Oil of peppermint 1 drop. ” juniper 8 drops. Potassium nitrate 8 grains. Powdered squill 3 ” Wheat flour 6 ” Extract of henbane 7 ” ” taraxacum 21 ” In 10 capsules.
The estimated cost of the materials of 14 capsules is under ¾d.
[1] Lycopodium is a fine powder consisting of plant-spores sometimes used by pharmacists for enveloping pills which easily take up moisture.
FITCH’S KIDNEY AND LIVER COOLER.
A bottle of this preparation containing rather less than 4 fluid ounces is sold for 2s. The directions are:
Take two teaspoonfuls mixed in water every morning.
The label and package appear to have been devised for the purpose of suggesting, without explicitly stating, that it is a cure for the complaints named. On one side appears the following (divided into sections by use of different type):
Oh my back, how it aches! Why? Fitch’s Kidney and Liver Cooler. Trade Mark. Sluggish liver. Inactive kidneys. Over-heated blood. Bad urine. Acts chemically by absorption.
and on the other:
Oh my back, how it aches! Why? Because your Kidneys and Liver are Sluggish, and a deposit has formed in the urine which will contaminate the whole system unless dissolved chemically. Try this; you won’t regret. It’s a grand conception.
Analysis showed the liquid to consist simply of a solution of potassium nitrate in water, the strength being 56 grains in a fluid ounce—that is, 14 grains in a dose.
The estimated cost of the contents of the bottle is one-eighth of a penny.
WARNER’S “SAFE” CURE.
Warner’s Safe Cure is a liquid sold in a bottle holding about 8 fluid ounces at the price of 2s. 9d.
The label bore the words, “For Kidney and Liver and Bright’s disease and jaundice, gravel, stone”—and a long list of other complaints. “Dose for adults, one tablespoonful 5 or 6 times a day.”
A “medical pamphlet” of 34 pages accompanied the bottle, from which the following extracts are taken:
Warner’s “Safe” Cure is a purely vegetable compound, and contains no narcotic or harmful drugs; it is free from sediment and is pleasant to take; it is a most valuable and effective tonic; it stimulates digestion, awakens the torpid liver, and puts the entire system in the very best receptive state for the work of restoring the kidneys. It does its work with absolute method, preparing the tissues, soothing and stimulating the enfeebled organs, healing at the same time. It builds up the body, gives it strength, and restores the energy which is or has been wasting under the baneful suffering of kidney disease. Warner’s “Safe” Cure was discovered about thirty years ago by one of the most eminent specialists in diseases of the kidneys, who had made a life-study of kidney and kindred diseases.
How to test your kidneys. Put some morning urine in a glass or bottle; let it stand for twenty-four hours; if there is a reddish sediment in the bottom of the glass, or if the urine is cloudy or milky, or if you see particles or germs floating about in it, your kidneys are diseased and you should lose no time but get a bottle of Warner’s “Safe” Cure, as it is dangerous to neglect your kidneys for even one day. Bright’s disease, gravel, liver complaint, pains in the back, rheumatism, rheumatic gout, inflammation of bladder, stone in the bladder, uric acid poison, dropsy, eczema, scrofula, blood disease, offensive odour from sweating, so-called ‘female weakness,’ painful periods, too frequent desire to urinate, and painful passing of urine are all caused by diseased kidneys, and can be speedily cured by Warner’s “Safe” Cure, which has been prescribed for twenty-five years.”
Of Bright’s disease it is remarked:
It is one of the harassing complaints which physicians in family practice seldom have the patience to investigate and manage with sufficient care.
The assumed predilection of the public for vegetable remedies is no doubt answerable for potassium nitrate being classed as “purely vegetable” in so many of these medicines. In the present case analysis showed the presence of potassium nitrate, alcohol, glycerine, a trace of oil of wintergreen, and vegetable extractive; there was no alkaloid or similar active principle, and the extract had little distinctive taste or character; all its properties pointed to its consisting largely of extract of taraxacum, with some other extract containing a small quantity of tannin; a careful series of comparisons with all the drugs in ordinary use which were not excluded by various tests did not identify it with any of them, and it is probable that it is obtained from some non-medicinal plant.
The following formula gives an almost identical mixture:
Potassium nitrate 50 grains. Oil of gaultheria ⅓ minim. Rectified spirit 5 fluid drams. Liquid extract of taraxacum 10 ” Glycerine 4 ” Water to 8 fluid ounces.
This contains about 10 per cent. of pure alcohol, which is the proportion found in Warner’s Cure; in a mixture of which a tablespoonful was to be taken five or six—or, according to the handbill with it, six to eight—times a day, this proportion of alcohol is by no means negligible.
In such a mixture there is no means of determining exactly the amount of liquid extract of taraxacum, especially as it is liable to vary considerably in colour and in amount of solid residue; this is by far the most expensive ingredient in the above formula, and it is probable that the amount is here over-estimated. Taking the quantity here given, the estimated cost of the drugs for one bottle of the mixture is 5¼d.
VENO’S SEAWEED TONIC.
The Company in Manchester which advertises Veno’s Seaweed Tonic sells it at the price of 1s. 1½d. a bottle, holding 2¾ to 3 fluid ounces.
The label states:
Contains in a pleasant and agreeable form the active principles of seaweed. First introduced into the medical world by Mr. Veno, and now admitted to be a most efficient and valuable medicine. Veno’s seaweed tonic is prepared on an entirely new principle, and is free from poisonous or mineral drugs. It cures all ailments arising from a diseased condition of the Stomach, Liver, Kidneys, and Blood, which, when diseased, cause nearly all sickness. Dose.—For an adult, one teaspoonful twice or three times daily.
The following extracts are taken from a pamphlet enclosed with the bottle:
Veno’s Seaweed Tonic is a specific remedy; money cannot make it better. If it fails, no other medicine will ever succeed; but sufferers must have patience.
Kidney Diseases, Weak Back, Backache or Lumbago, Incipient Bright’s Disease. If you suffer from a weak back, with pain, soreness, or stiffness; if there is a dragging weakness in the limbs and lack of muscular energy; or if your urine is very clear or high coloured, showing a sediment of white flakes through it, it indicates a weakness or disease of the kidneys. Veno’s Seaweed Tonic should be taken for at least two or three months, in teaspoonful doses twice or three times daily, after meals.
The mixture contained a small proportion of undissolved sediment, which, when collected and examined, agreed in all respects with the insoluble portion of leptandrin. Glycerine, a little phosphate, alcohol, and a trace of chloroform were present, and vegetable extractive. Careful examination of the latter gave evidence of the presence of the constituents of cascara sagrada, senna, and rhubarb. Such a mixture as this could not, of course, be quantitatively resolved into its components, and the proportions given below were arrived at by comparisons of the properties of various trial mixtures with the properties of the original; no indication was obtained of any substance derived from seaweed. The following formula gives a practically identical mixture:
Leptandrin 10 grains. Sodium phosphate, crystals 33 ” Liquid extract of cascara sagrada 45 minims. Concentrated infusion of rhubarb (1-7) 1 fluid dram. ” ” senna (1-7) 2½ fluid drams. Glycerine 2 ” Chloroform water 1 fluid ounce. Water to 3 fluid ounces.
The estimated cost of the ingredients is 1½d.
MUNYON’S KIDNEY CURE.
This is sold by Munyon’s Homœopathic Home Remedy Company from an address in London, but is stated to be “Manufactured in U.S. of America.” The price is 1s. a bottle, containing 132 pilules.
The directions are: “Four pellets every hour,” which must at least keep the patient amused.
The label bears the words:
Cures Bright’s disease, gravel, all urinary troubles, and pain in the back or groins from kidney diseases.
The following extracts are from a circular enclosed with the bottle:
Munyon’s Improved Homœopathic Remedies are radically different from those used by the regular school of homœopathy or any other system of medicine. We have the true cure for the most obstinate as well as the most intricate of diseases. The whole secret of Munyon’s Remedies is the science of combining and harmonizing all drugs that are known to cure certain diseases, so that by our special combinations we cover every phase of the case, no matter what the complaint. There is no experimenting, no guesswork, but an absolutely fixed law of cure.
Munyon’s Kidney Cure has no equal. It cures pain in the back, loins, or groins, from kidney disease, puffy and flabby face, dropsy of the feet and limbs, frequent desire to pass water, scanty urine, dark-coloured and turbid urine sediment in the urine, gravel in the bladder, and too-great a flow of urine.
The pilules were found to vary much in size, the average weight being 0·6 grain. Analysis showed them to consist of ordinary white sugar; no trace could be detected of any alkaloid or other active principle, or of any medication. The sugar was determined quantitatively, and found to be just 100·0 per cent. of the weight of the pilules.
Estimated cost of contents of bottle, one thirty-fifth of a penny.