THIS BUGS ME

Argentine Rx: Take 70 Beetles And Call Me in the Morning (Wall Street Journal, 8/6/2003)

The stress of living in this economically hobbled nation can wear a body down. So Ruben Dieminger takes strong measures to boost his immune system.

Prying open a plastic container that holds a wriggling mass of small brown beetles, Mr. Dieminger shook about a dozen into a glass of lemon-flavored soft drink. Then he lifted the glass to his lips, and ... chug-a-bug.

"That's what I needed," he said.

Mr. Dieminger, 40 years old, is among a growing number of Argentines who maintain that there are times that everyone needs a dose of this Asian bug, known to scientists as ulomoides dermestoides and to laymen as the darkling beetle. According to beetle-eating proponents, secretions from the insect strengthen the body's defenses against cancer, AIDS, asthma and diabetes, among other ills....

Mr. Dieminger advises adherents to start by swallowing a single beetle and then building up their intake to 70 a day. The pea-sized bugs are eaten live.

Skeptics say bug-eating itself is a symptom of the decline of a once proud and prosperous nation.

If this is the logical conclusion to kleptocratic government, I'll be an even more fervent conservative. Posted by Paul Jaminet at August 6, 2003 9:00 AM