--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Natural,my ass! The worst poison known to…" description: "\"“Natural,my ass! The worst poison known to man comes from a tree frog in South America. You cannot imagine how small an amount would be necessary to ki..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg" --- # Natural,my ass! The worst poison known to man comes from a… ![“Natural,my ass! The worst poison known to man comes from a tree frog in South America. You cannot imagine how small an amount would be necessary to kill you.and it's natural.Calling something NATURAL is a MEANINGLESS MARKETING PLOY." "All right,calm down! Maybe I like alternative medicine because…” quote by Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg) > ““Natural,my ass! The worst poison known to man comes from a tree frog in South America. You cannot imagine how small an amount would be necessary to kill you.and it's natural.Calling something NATURAL is a MEANINGLESS MARKETING PLOY." "All right,calm down! Maybe I like alternative medicine because it's been in use for more than six thousand years.After all that time,they have to know what they're doing." "You mean the wacky idea that somehow in the distant past people had more scientific wisdom than they do today?That's both crazy and counterintuitive.Six thousand years ago people thought thunder was a bunch of gods moving around furniture." -Conversation btw Dr.Jack Stapleton and Vinnie”” [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques the misuse of “natural” as a marketing tactic, highlighting that natural substances can be toxic and that appeal to tradition is not evidence of safety or efficacy. **In simple terms:** Natural doesn’t guarantee safety; tradition isn’t proof of effectiveness. Key Takeaway Question claims and seek evidence rather than relying on “natural” labels. Themes skepticism marketing health trust tradition Mood cautious critical inquisitive Type advisory critical educational When to use this quote - evaluating supplements - public health messaging - consumer decision‑making - medical education - policy development Key Concepts toxicity placebo effect confirmation bias regulatory oversight Questions to Reflect On - How do we balance respect for traditional practices with scientific scrutiny? - What criteria should determine when “natural” is a reliable health claim? A Different Perspective The argument may overgeneralize and dismiss all natural remedies, ignoring cases where traditional knowledge is valuable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alternative medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternative-medicine/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [South america](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/south-america/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) ## Related quotes > [“Your calling is your natural area of concentration”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/your-calling-is-your-natural-area-of-concentration/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [Most people have forgotten how to live with living creatures, with living systems and that, in turn, is the reason why man, whenever he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/most-people-have-forgotten-how-to-live-with-living-creatures-with/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [One has to kill a few of one’s natural selves to let the rest grow — a very painful slaughter of innocents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-sidgwick/one-has-to-kill-a-few-of-one-s-natural-selves-to-let-the-rest-grow-a/) [Henry Sidgwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-sidgwick/) > [“Smoking will probably kill me, but so will natural selection.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carroll-bryant/smoking-will-probably-kill-me-but-so-will-natural-selection/) [Carroll Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carroll-bryant/) > [On the other side of the spirit veil, I spend more than a little bit of time researching the hallucinogens. I personally believe ayahuasca…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/on-the-other-side-of-the-spirit-veil-i-spend-more-than-a-little-bit/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [I studied homeopathy for years and years. Herbs and all kinds of acupuncture, acupressure, alternative medicine. I think it's just better to treat the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sissy-spacek/i-studied-homeopathy-for-years-and-years-herbs-and-all-kinds-of/) [Sissy Spacek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sissy-spacek/) > [England has a long history of supporting alternative medicine - maybe it's because they don't have such a strong pharmaceutical industry in England, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dasha-zhukova/england-has-a-long-history-of-supporting-alternative-medicine-maybe/) [Dasha Zhukova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dasha-zhukova/) > [In other parts of the world where I go, people are worried about, Jeez, you know, I really wanted to buy my kids shoes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/in-other-parts-of-the-world-where-i-go-people-are-worried-about-jeez/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [Alternative medicine plays into this exaggerated notion that you can prevent disease simply by doing the right thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/alternative-medicine-plays-into-this-exaggerated-notion-that-you-can/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [You need to understand plant chemistry, be inured to discomfort and awesomely flexible. When something breaks down-the plane, the boat, you just have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/you-need-to-understand-plant-chemistry-be-inured-to-discomfort-and/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [“In the field of medicine, Galen, the Alexandrian scientist, propounded a view that is still around, nowadays called 'alternative medicine.'It was taught in many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-f-cantor/in-the-field-of-medicine-galen-the-alexandrian-scientist-propounded-a/) [Norman F. Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-f-cantor/) > [If any remedy is tested under controlled scientific conditions and proved to be effective, it will cease to be alternative and will simply become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/if-any-remedy-is-tested-under-controlled-scientific-conditions-and/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [A man may esteem himself happy when that which is his food is also his medicine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-man-may-esteem-himself-happy-when-that-which-is-his-food-is-also/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Maca boosts sex drive like crazy. And if there's any side effect, some people just have to stop taking it because they get so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/maca-boosts-sex-drive-like-crazy-and-if-there-s-any-side-effect-some/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [A man doesn't need a study to know if he's feeling amorous. There is no such thing as a placebo erection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/a-man-doesn-t-need-a-study-to-know-if-he-s-feeling-amorous-there-is/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) ## More by Robin Cook > [Bin Laden was, though, a product of a monumental miscalculation by western security agencies. Throughout the 80s he was armed by the CIA and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/bin-laden-was-though-a-product-of-a-monumental-miscalculation-by/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [Chicken masala is now Britain's true national dish, not only because it is the most popular, but because it is a perfect illustration of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/chicken-masala-is-now-britain-s-true-national-dish-not-only-because/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [Saddam is neither friend nor brother to us, and he will never pay off debts to us. It's the question of precedent: today the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/saddam-is-neither-friend-nor-brother-to-us-and-he-will-never-pay-off/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [The truth is, there is no Islamic army or terrorist group called Al Qaida. And any informed intelligence officer knows this. But there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/the-truth-is-there-is-no-islamic-army-or-terrorist-group-called-al/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [I may not have succeeded in halting the war, but I did secure the right of parliament to decide on war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/i-may-not-have-succeeded-in-halting-the-war-but-i-did-secure-the/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [“over his body. The skin of the thorax that had been removed was draped over his legs. On it was a large tattoo of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/over-his-body-the-skin-of-the-thorax-that-had-been-removed-was-draped/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [“Then, as Noah would say, the shit hit the fan. On two occasions, he was hauled before the Residency Advisory Board, which was particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/then-as-noah-would-say-the-shit-hit-the-fan-on-two-occasions-he-was/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [The question Tony Blair should be reflecting on this weekend is having achieved this, having secured his place in the history of the Labour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/the-question-tony-blair-should-be-reflecting-on-this-weekend-is/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [There is a connection waiting to be made between the decline in democratic participation and the explosion in new ways of communicating. We need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/there-is-a-connection-waiting-to-be-made-between-the-decline-in/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [Tony Blair has to consider very carefully to what extent he can leave Britain, the party and the nation guessing as to when exactly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/tony-blair-has-to-consider-very-carefully-to-what-extent-he-can-leave/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [There were no international terrorists in Iraq until we went in. It was we who gave the perfect conditions in which Al Qaeda could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/there-were-no-international-terrorists-in-iraq-until-we-went-in-it/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [Medical school had been a time for imaginary diseases and Martin had contracted almost all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/medical-school-had-been-a-time-for-imaginary-diseases-and-martin-had/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [She thought about how marvelous is would be to have a wife keeping the house in order, the meals on the table. At the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/she-thought-about-how-marvelous-is-would-be-to-have-a-wife-keeping/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [I can't accept collective responsibility for the decision to commit Britain now to military action in Iraq without international agreement or domestic support.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/i-can-t-accept-collective-responsibility-for-the-decision-to-commit/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [“A investigação podia dar esperanças para o futuro, curando as doenças... mas tinha um outro potencial muito mais perturbador.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/a-investiga-o-podia-dar-esperan-as-para-o-futuro-curando-as-doen-as/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) [Explore all 21 Robin Cook quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) ## More Alternative medicine quotes > [A man doesn't need a study to know if he's feeling amorous. There is no such thing as a placebo erection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/a-man-doesn-t-need-a-study-to-know-if-he-s-feeling-amorous-there-is/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [Maca boosts sex drive like crazy. And if there's any side effect, some people just have to stop taking it because they get so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/maca-boosts-sex-drive-like-crazy-and-if-there-s-any-side-effect-some/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [A man may esteem himself happy when that which is his food is also his medicine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-man-may-esteem-himself-happy-when-that-which-is-his-food-is-also/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [If any remedy is tested under controlled scientific conditions and proved to be effective, it will cease to be alternative and will simply become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/if-any-remedy-is-tested-under-controlled-scientific-conditions-and/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“In the field of medicine, Galen, the Alexandrian scientist, propounded a view that is still around, nowadays called 'alternative medicine.'It was taught in many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-f-cantor/in-the-field-of-medicine-galen-the-alexandrian-scientist-propounded-a/) [Norman F. Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-f-cantor/) > [You need to understand plant chemistry, be inured to discomfort and awesomely flexible. When something breaks down-the plane, the boat, you just have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/you-need-to-understand-plant-chemistry-be-inured-to-discomfort-and/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [Alternative medicine plays into this exaggerated notion that you can prevent disease simply by doing the right thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/alternative-medicine-plays-into-this-exaggerated-notion-that-you-can/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [In other parts of the world where I go, people are worried about, Jeez, you know, I really wanted to buy my kids shoes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/in-other-parts-of-the-world-where-i-go-people-are-worried-about-jeez/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [England has a long history of supporting alternative medicine - maybe it's because they don't have such a strong pharmaceutical industry in England, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dasha-zhukova/england-has-a-long-history-of-supporting-alternative-medicine-maybe/) [Dasha Zhukova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dasha-zhukova/) > [I studied homeopathy for years and years. Herbs and all kinds of acupuncture, acupressure, alternative medicine. I think it's just better to treat the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sissy-spacek/i-studied-homeopathy-for-years-and-years-herbs-and-all-kinds-of/) [Sissy Spacek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sissy-spacek/) > [On the other side of the spirit veil, I spend more than a little bit of time researching the hallucinogens. I personally believe ayahuasca…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/on-the-other-side-of-the-spirit-veil-i-spend-more-than-a-little-bit/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [“Calling holistic medicine "alternative medicine" is no longer appropriate. The best approach now is "integrated medicine" in which we take the best of both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candess-m-campbell/calling-holistic-medicine-alternative-medicine-is-no-longer/) Candess M. Campbell > [You know the expression, "It's not personal; it's business." We sneer at such rot. All business is personal, all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/you-know-the-expression-it-s-not-personal-it-s-business-we-sneer-at/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [If you want to be happy, make someone else happy. If you want to find the right person in your life, be the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/if-you-want-to-be-happy-make-someone-else-happy-if-you-want-to-find/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [There is no better example of the weakness of our dominant medicine than its clearly ineffective War On Cancer. By the same token, there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-atkins/there-is-no-better-example-of-the-weakness-of-our-dominant-medicine/) [Robert Atkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-atkins/) [Browse all 71 Alternative medicine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternative-medicine/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Natural,my ass! The worst poison known to man comes from a tree frog in South America. You cannot imagine how small an amount would be necessary to kill you.and it's natural.Calling something NATURAL is a MEANINGLESS MARKETING PLOY.\" \"All right,calm down! Maybe I like alternative medicine because it's been in use for more than six thousand years.After all that time,they have to know what they're doing.\" \"You mean the wacky idea that somehow in the distant past people had more scientific wisdom than they do today?That's both crazy and counterintuitive.Six thousand years ago people thought thunder was a bunch of gods moving around furniture.\" -Conversation btw Dr.Jack Stapleton and Vinnie”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robin Cook" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to-man-comes-from-a-tree-frog/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alternative medicine" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to-man-comes-from-a-tree-frog/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/robin-cook-25575_alternative-medicine_natural-my-ass-the-worst-poison-known-to_2616634.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Natural,my ass! 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