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Charles Alfred Tyrrell
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Charles Alfred Tyrrell
Charles Alfred Tyrrell (1843 – July 2, 1918) was a promoter of medical devices, most notably an enema appliance. He was also author of tracts promoting the use of his device for colon cleansing as therapy for detoxification pursuant to a theory of auto-intoxication.
Tyrrell's claim that his J. B. L. Cascade device could cure all disease was dismissed by medical experts as quackery.
Tyrrell was born in England and travelled to India, China, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia prior to emigrating to New York City in 1889. In his will dated 2 August 1915 Tyrrell said he had married "Eliza or Lillie" Glaister in Australia about thirty years previously. He said that she had disappeared and that three years later he married (his current wife) Emma W. But in 1914 he had learned that Eliza was still alive, and he made arrangements for her support. By his first marriage he had a son, Ernest Alfred Tyrrell, who was born 1881.
Having called himself "Professor" and an M.D. for years, Tyrrell finally got an M.D. degree in 1900 at age 57 from the Eclectic Medical College of New York. Eclectic medicine was primarily concerned with herbal medicine.
Tyrrell established the Tyrrell Hygienic Institute in New York City to promote his various books and products. His wife Emma was the corporate secretary. Tyrrell died at his home in Manhattan on July 2, 1918. Despite this, the Institute seems to have existed at least until the late 1930s.
Tyrrell sold a device named the "Ideal Sight Restorer". This was "a piece of tubing with a rubber bulb attached for the purpose of producing a partial vacuum over the eyeballs". The device was reviewed by the AMA and criticized as "pseudomedical claptrap"; the manufacturer, Ideal Company, moved to England and was renamed "Neu-Vita Hygienic Institute"—to avoid prosecution.
Tyrrell promoted an enema appliance he called the "J. B. L. Cascade". "J.B.L." stood for "Joy, Beauty, Life". This was his primary money-maker. He accessorized the product, selling "Rectal Soap" and a fluid, "J. B. L. Antiseptic Tonic", a patent medicine, to be used with it. The J. B. L. Casade consisted of a rubber bag which was filled with the "J. B. L. Antiseptic Tonic" which was inserted into the anus. The weight of the body would force the tonic into the rectum. An investigation by the American Medical Association (AMA) found that Henry M. Guild invented the device and patented it in 1903, and assigned his patents to Tyrrell. Tyrrell incorrectly claimed to be the inventor of the device.
Tyrrell advertised the device as curing practically all diseases including appendicitis, dysmenorrhea, obesity, piles, gastritis, hydrocele, typhoid fever, scarlet fever, malaria, paralysis and rheumatism. However, his claims had no medical basis. In 1922, it was noted that "the facts are it will neither prevent nor cure disease, and it is not endorsed by leading physicians."
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Charles Alfred Tyrrell
Charles Alfred Tyrrell (1843 – July 2, 1918) was a promoter of medical devices, most notably an enema appliance. He was also author of tracts promoting the use of his device for colon cleansing as therapy for detoxification pursuant to a theory of auto-intoxication.
Tyrrell's claim that his J. B. L. Cascade device could cure all disease was dismissed by medical experts as quackery.
Tyrrell was born in England and travelled to India, China, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia prior to emigrating to New York City in 1889. In his will dated 2 August 1915 Tyrrell said he had married "Eliza or Lillie" Glaister in Australia about thirty years previously. He said that she had disappeared and that three years later he married (his current wife) Emma W. But in 1914 he had learned that Eliza was still alive, and he made arrangements for her support. By his first marriage he had a son, Ernest Alfred Tyrrell, who was born 1881.
Having called himself "Professor" and an M.D. for years, Tyrrell finally got an M.D. degree in 1900 at age 57 from the Eclectic Medical College of New York. Eclectic medicine was primarily concerned with herbal medicine.
Tyrrell established the Tyrrell Hygienic Institute in New York City to promote his various books and products. His wife Emma was the corporate secretary. Tyrrell died at his home in Manhattan on July 2, 1918. Despite this, the Institute seems to have existed at least until the late 1930s.
Tyrrell sold a device named the "Ideal Sight Restorer". This was "a piece of tubing with a rubber bulb attached for the purpose of producing a partial vacuum over the eyeballs". The device was reviewed by the AMA and criticized as "pseudomedical claptrap"; the manufacturer, Ideal Company, moved to England and was renamed "Neu-Vita Hygienic Institute"—to avoid prosecution.
Tyrrell promoted an enema appliance he called the "J. B. L. Cascade". "J.B.L." stood for "Joy, Beauty, Life". This was his primary money-maker. He accessorized the product, selling "Rectal Soap" and a fluid, "J. B. L. Antiseptic Tonic", a patent medicine, to be used with it. The J. B. L. Casade consisted of a rubber bag which was filled with the "J. B. L. Antiseptic Tonic" which was inserted into the anus. The weight of the body would force the tonic into the rectum. An investigation by the American Medical Association (AMA) found that Henry M. Guild invented the device and patented it in 1903, and assigned his patents to Tyrrell. Tyrrell incorrectly claimed to be the inventor of the device.
Tyrrell advertised the device as curing practically all diseases including appendicitis, dysmenorrhea, obesity, piles, gastritis, hydrocele, typhoid fever, scarlet fever, malaria, paralysis and rheumatism. However, his claims had no medical basis. In 1922, it was noted that "the facts are it will neither prevent nor cure disease, and it is not endorsed by leading physicians."
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