Russell John Beckett, a 54-year-old Australian veterinarian introduced the world to mineral water that sells for $50 a case. (The recommended dose is 2 liters a day, about $5 worth.) The price is justified by testimonials from several people who claim the water cured them of various diseases. Paul Sheehan, a believer in the miracle water, had an article published in the Australian Herald's Good Weekend magazine that touted the water as good for arthritis, fatigue, and osteoporosis. Even though he mentioned that no scientific testing had been done, TV networks picked up the story and soon
queues of up to 600 sick people - some of them in wheelchairs, some using walking-sticks - formed outside the premises of Bert's Soft Drinks in the southern Sydney bayside suburb of Taren Point, then the only place the water could be obtained....
In the hysteria, people drove from Melbourne to obtain supplies. Customers were rationed to three cases each (a case, then costing $30, contains 24 600 ml plastic bottles). Dennis Shelley, a director of the family-owned bottling company, was quoted in the St George and Sutherland Shire Leader as saying that 10,000 cases had been sold in a single day, $300,000 worth. (Australian Herald)
Imagine what the sales would have been like if Sheehan had had more evidence than just five success stories regarding people, one involving a dog, and another involving a cat who died.
Beckett "discovered" his miracle water by deducing that the water would assist in longevity because sheep and cattle in New South Wales seemed to live longer than other sheep. Beckett attributed this fact - if it is a fact - to creek water drunk by the animals rather than to breeding or good animal husbandry. Beckett says he's sure the magnesium carbonate in the creek water is the miracle ingredient, so he began selling bottles of water with the mineral in it.
Beckett apparently is misleading the world not only about this miracle water but about his credentials as a scientist. He's been described as having a doctorate in biochemical pathology from Sydney University, even though the university doesn't offer such a degree. His claims as a researcher have also been called into question.
Some potential customers might be impressed by the patents granted* to the miracle water, especially if they choose to ignore the fact that being granted a patent doesn't mean the stuff has been tested or that it works.
In Australia, the Therapeutic Goods Administration forced Beckett to remove the more outrageous therapeutic claims from his website. But this was not until he'd formed six companies with his son, his brother, and his friend (Dennis Shelley) to market his product, "Unique Water." Beckett moved on to Canada with his partner's daughter, Tanya Shelley, where he and a Korean associate marketed his miracle water as Aqua Gilgamesh. Efforts to locate either Beckett or Shelley by the Australian Herald have been unsuccessful.
