SCAM ALERT: We Won’t Be Silent About Silent Male Plague Scam

Ryan Shelton, a notorious Internet infoscammer, is promoting a “silent male plague“. He claims that this plague is effecting the sexual performance of American men over 45, pointing to an EPA warning issued in 1996 about this plague.  Of course, the EPA did no such thing.  This, and other lies, permeate Shelton’s outrageous claims about this “plague”.

In actuality, Shelton is just engaging in fear mongering.  It’s long been known that men’s testosterone levels decline with age. And for years, Internet scammers have promoted the idea that men suffer a range of symptoms caused by what’s sometimes described as “male menopause.” (such as fatigue, weakness, muscle loss, dulled memory and thinking, depression, and dampened libido and erectile dysfunction)  One thing that medical science is agreed upon is that testosterone supplements won’t help most men with sexual dysfunction.  Yet, that’s exactly that Shelton is pitching in order to sell his Barbarian XL Testosterone Booster for up to $49 per bottle (one month supply).  Read below to find out the REAL truth about the “silent male plague”.   And, at the end of this article, we’ll reveal a scientifically proven way to increase testosterone levels and improve sexual performance  (hint: it’s nothing that Shelton can sell you).

Who Is Ryan Shelton and Why It Matters

“Dr” Ryan Shelton has a number of Internet-based cures that he peddles including the Hair Revital X, Join FLX,  Longevity Activator, SoundQuility, SouthBeach Skin Lab, Diabetes 60 and fertility treatments among other things.   Ryan Shelton is not a medical doctor, but a naturopath.  However, he bills himself as a physician, which is a violation of law in California.  On one of his web offerings,  he calls himself a “licensed primary care physician” yet there’s no listing of him in the Hawaiian Licensing Division as a medical doctor. Why does he lie about his qualifications?

Over the past 10 years, Shelton has moved around the U.S. frequently and appears to current have practices in “sun-soaked” Hawaii as well as having a presence in Australia.  The Zenith Laboratories that he is listed as the medical director of this Illinois-based supplement vendor, although Shelton has no medical practice in that state.  The Zenith Labs website states:  “between his best-selling books and his medical practice in Hawaii, Dr. Ryan has helped hundreds of thousands of men & women…”   A search on Amazon Books finds no book authored or sold by Ryan Shelton.  Similarly, a search of the Library of Congress shows no book by Shelton.  Even Google comes up snake eyes.  Not only has Shelton not published any books, but whatever ebooks he has sold on the Internet can hardly be called “best selling”. Why does Zenith Labs lie about its medical director’s publishing record?

Over those 10 years, Shelton has been developing an Internet marketing machine to sell supplements that purport to cure obesity, tinnitus, vision impairment, premature aging, diabetes, joint health, heart disease and digestive diseases.    Ever hear about the now-discredited Spark Health Media?  Shelton was involved in that.   If you’ve stumbled across Zenith Labs, you’ll find a host of cure-alls for just about anything that ills you.   While some of what Shelton preaches is scientifically-validated common sense, his sites are really all about trying to sell you overpriced pills that will likely not cure you any better than a placebo.   So, let’s take a closer look at “Dr” Shelton and get to the bottom of what he’s actually selling consumers and whether we can recommend your buying ANYTHING from this notorious Internet infoscammer.

Some Flashing Red Lights

“Dr” Shelton has decided to use the Internet to peddle his potions and pills.   While that’s not a crime, what is troubling are the sketchy methods he uses to sell those products.  Shelton hires copywriters to compose lengthy (and undocumented) stories about his marvelous concoctions.   These marketing pitches are hallmarks of the infoscammers that we’ve chronicled at this blog.  Infoscammers, in essence, find ways to misrepresent or overprice medical cures that are readily available for free or low-cost to most all Americans.  Worse yet, Shelton has relied upon affiliate marketers to promote his products — and that’s downright misleading.   These affiliates claim to have “reviewed” the products, but actually they are paid commissions for every consumer they’ve lured to Shelton’s company.   Most all of the reviews are identical; they’ve been largely written by professional copywriters to trick consumers that happen upon their “review sites”  into thinking that the product has been throughly tested by the reviewer.  In fact, they aren’t.

What is the Core Ingredient in Barbarian XL

Shelton claims that boswellia extract is the key ingredient in his formulation to boost testoterone.   But does it?  Medical News Today reports that while it does have proven anti-inflammatory qualities, boswellia has no proven impact upon testosterone levels.   In fact, new guidelines from the American College of Physicians in 2020 establishes that testosterone-boosting supplements will not help most men.   But what is actually happening is that the boswellia (frankincense) tree is nearing the verge of collapse.  A 2019 study in Nature found that boswellia trees are “in peril” and will likely not be around much longer, because of the inflated (and unproven) health benefits attributed to the tree’s resin.  For Shelon to promote this increasingly endangered tree as his core ingredient is no better than the smugglers who kills elephants for their tusks, rhinos for their horns and tigers for their bones.   It’s borderline criminal, especially in light of the fact that NONE of these rare ingredients have any proven link to male potency.

Just to add insult to injury, not only is Shelton promoting a specious and endangered ingredient but he’s asking $49 per month for 60 capsules.  Two of those capsules contain 150mg of boswellia serrata resin extract.   The far more reputable supplement retailer Vitacost sells 120 capsules (a two-month supply) of the same extract at the same dosage, but for only $9.   So for $4.50 per month, you can try out boswellia extract rather than paying 1000% more to Shelton.

What About That EPA Reproductive Risk Assessment?

In 1996, the EPA issued a set of risk assessment guidelines describe the current state-ofthe-art for evaluation and interpretation of data. They were intended to create an analytical construct by whichresearchers could evaluate reproductive impacts of various chemicals used by farmers, food processors and chemical companies. It focused on the underlying basis on which various assumptions used in risk assessment were developed and the uncertainties inherent in the risk assessment process.  The study itself is publicly available and nowhere does it mention a plague affecting anyone, let alone men over the age of 45.  In fact, it references a 1995 study of Seattle men who experienced no discernable worsening of semen quality.

However, Shelton seizes on the study’s recognition that toxic chemicals can have an impact upon reproductive health  (something that had been well known since the 1700s).  He uses this as a springboard to offer a supplement that allegedly aids the body’s ability to deal with toxins.   He claims, falsely, that boswelia (commonly known as frankincense) will improve male fertility.  (it doesn’t unless you are a male rat).  In fact, a 2016 study found that frankincense can have anti-fertility effects.

Infoscammers Who Sell Supplements Exploit the Placebo Effect

The idea that your brain can convince your body a fake treatment is the real thing.  It’s referred to as the placebo effect and has been around for as long as humans have attempted to heal other humans.  However, scientists have been able to actually document how placebos work and have found that in some cases a placebo can be just as effective as traditional treatments. Infoscammers rely upon this effect to help them sell their questionable supplements.   Whether it be pills or diets or lifestyle changes, almost half of the people who buy into these schemes are likely to experience some degree of relief due to the placebo effect.  Sadly, Shelton’s Zenith Labs have zeroed in their marketing strategy to exploit the placebo effect.  In short, as many as 50% of the people who buy Zenith Lab pills are likely to feel some effect.  And, once hooked, they’ll be faithfully buying Shelton’s shady overpriced pills for a long time.

How to Increase Your Testosterone for Free

Almost any doctor will tell you that if you want to improve your testosterone levels and improve sexual performance, you can do it for free.  You just need to get away from your computer and TV.   It’s all about exercise.  Study after study after study show a direct link between exercise and male testosterone levels.  Any type of exercise can increase testosterone. A 2016 paper from the Journal of Clinical Biochemistry and Nutrition found that “an increase in physical activity greatly affected the increased serum testosterone levels in overweight and obese men during lifestyle modification.” They reported that getting exercise on a regular basis did more to increase testosterone levels than losing weight. And a 2012 paper showed that physically active men show better hormone values than sedentary men.   And there are different types of exercise that will help:

  1. Use high-intensity interval training (HIIT)
  2. Lifting heavy stuff
  3. Multiple-reps at lighter weights
  4. Working out your entire body, including legs.
  5. Short, but intense, exercises

But, of course, Shelton can’t sell you exercise.  He’d rather sell you pills because that’s where the money is.   Now you know what Shelton and his cronies. won’t tell you.

If You Need to Know More About Shelton’s Scams

Check out our other investigations into Ryan Shelton:

SCAM ALERT: Dr. Ryan Shelton – the Anatomy of a Medical Infoscammer

SCAM ALERT: Zenith Labs Shady Detox Supplements

REVIEW: Beware Zoom Wellness’ Overpriced Products

SCAM ALERT: A Big No on Ryan Shelton’s NeuroFlo

ALERT: The Baby Builders Bummer

IN-DEPTH: How Infoscammers Hijacked The Placebo Effect To Rip You Off

SCAM ALERT: The Down-low on Diettalk.Com

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