waiting your turn to receive plastic surgery or a medical treatment. Then, you return to your peers in the waiting room for their approval. They may even tell you how much better you look after being injected with the toxin.

In a world concerned about Homeland Security, the raw botulism toxin (intended only for animal research) was purchased via the Internet and given to Eric and Bonnie Kaplan by a doctor they trusted. They thought they were getting genuine Botox but soon after receiving

Botox: Is it a Magic Potion or a Deadly Poison?

Botulinum toxin is the most poisonous substance known to man. Because of its extreme potency and lethality, the ease of production, transport, and misuse, Botulinum toxin is considered a bioweapon. A single gram of crystalline toxin, evenly dispersed as an aerosol and inhaled, would kill more than one-million people. Since aerosol dispersement is difficult, terrorists might instead use botulinum toxin to deliberately contaminate food sources.

Terrorists attempted to use botulinum toxin as a bioweapon in Japan in the 1990s but these attacks failed, either due to faulty microbiological technique, deficient aerosol equipment, or internal sabotage. After the Persian Gulf War, Iraq admitted to having produced and loaded into bombs and military weapons enough concentrated botulinum toxin to kill the entire current human population by inhalation. You may not sleep as well tonight after you know that the whereabouts of those toxic weapons is still unknown.

A purified and greatly diluted version of botulism toxin is manufactured and distributed by Allergan and marketed under the trade name Botox. It is used to minimize facial lines and wrinkles by paralyzing the muscle and causing it to relax. Botox is an FDA-approved and licensed Botulinum Toxin Type A derived from the waste of the bacteria Clostridium Botulinum—the same toxic byproduct that causes botulism food poisoning.

Millions of people have been injected with Botox but most do not realize that the serum is a weaker version of botulism bacteria. The media, pharmaceutical companies and doctors have made it seem so safe that many people receive this plastic surgery procedure at a social event known as a Botox party. This social gathering is thought to be more economical and help reduce the anxiety associated with getting an injection. Imagine going to a party, drinking a glass of wine and enjoying hors d’oeuvres with your friends while waiting your turn to receive plastic surgery or a medical treatment. Then, you return to your peers in the waiting room for their approval. They may even tell you how much better you look after being injected with the toxin.

In a world concerned about Homeland Security, the raw botulism toxin (intended only for animal research) was purchased via the Internet and given to Eric and Bonnie Kaplan by a doctor they trusted. They thought they were getting genuine Botox but soon after receiving i

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Terrorists attempted to use botulinum toxin as a bioweapon in Japan in the 1990s but these attacks failed, either due to faulty microbiological technique, deficient aerosol equipment, or internal sabotage. After the Persian Gulf War, Iraq admitted to having produced and loaded into bombs and military weapons enough concentrated botulinum toxin to kill the entire current human population by inhalation. You may not sleep as well tonight after you know that the whereabouts of those toxic weapons is still unknown.

A purified and greatly diluted version of botulism toxin is manufactured and distributed by Allergan and marketed under the trade name Botox. It is used to minimize facial lines and wrinkles by paralyzing the muscle and causing it to relax. Botox is an FDA-approved and licensed Botulinum Toxin Type A derived from the waste of the bacteria Clostridium Botulinum—the same toxic byproduct that causes botulism food poisoning.

Millions of people have been injected with Botox but most do not realize that the serum is a weaker version of botulism bacteria. The media, pharmaceutical companies and doctors have made it seem so safe that many people receive this plastic surgery procedure at a social event known as a Botox party. This social gathering is thought to be more economical and help reduce the anxiety associated with getting an injection. Imagine going to a party, drinking a glass of wine and enjoying hors d’oeuvres with your friends while waiting your turn to receive plastic surgery or a medical treatment. Then, you return to your peers in the waiting room for their approval. They may even tell you how much better you look after being injected with the toxin.

In a world concerned about Homeland Security, the raw botulism toxin (intended only for animal research) was purchased via the Internet and given to Eric and Bonnie Kaplan by a doctor they trusted. They thought they were getting genuine Botox but soon after receiving

apons is still unknown.

A purified and greatly diluted version of botulism toxin is manufactured and distributed by Allergan and marketed under the trade name Botox. It is used to minimize facial lines and wrinkles by paralyzing the muscle and causing it to relax. Botox is an FDA-approved and licensed Botulinum Toxin Type A derived from the waste of the bacteria Clostridium Botulinum—the same toxic byproduct that causes botulism food poisoning.

Millions of people have been injected with Botox but most do not realize that the serum is a weaker version of botulism bacteria. The media, pharmaceutical companies and doctors have made it seem so safe that many people receive this plastic surgery procedure at a social event known as a Botox party. This social gathering is thought to be more economical and help reduce the anxiety associated with getting an injection. Imagine going to a party, drinking a glass of wine and enjoying hors d’oeuvres with your friends while waiting your turn to receive plastic surgery or a medical treatment. Then, you return to your peers in the waiting room for their approval. They may even tell you how much better you look after being injected with the toxin.

In a world concerned about Homeland Security, the raw botulism toxin (intended only for animal research) was purchased via the Internet and given to Eric and Bonnie Kaplan by a doctor they trusted. They thought they were getting genuine Botox but soon after receiving

ected with Botox but most do not realize that the serum is a weaker version of botulism bacteria. The media, pharmaceutical companies and doctors have made it seem so safe that many people receive this plastic surgery procedure at a social event known as a Botox party. This social gathering is thought to be more economical and help reduce the anxiety associated with getting an injection. Imagine going to a party, drinking a glass of wine and enjoying hors d’oeuvres with your friends while waiting your turn to receive plastic surgery or a medical treatment. Then, you return to your peers in the waiting room for their approval. They may even tell you how much better you look after being injected with the toxin.

In a world concerned about Homeland Security, the raw botulism toxin (intended only for animal research) was purchased via the Internet and given to Eric and Bonnie Kaplan by a doctor they trusted. They thought they were getting genuine Botox but soon after receiving

waiting your turn to receive plastic surgery or a medical treatment. Then, you return to your peers in the waiting room for their approval. They may even tell you how much better you look after being injected with the toxin.

In a world concerned about Homeland Security, the raw botulism toxin (intended only for animal research) was purchased via the Internet and given to Eric and Bonnie Kaplan by a doctor they trusted. They thought they were getting genuine Botox but soon after receiving injections they were totally paralyzed and fighting for their lives. The toxin that could be used as a bioweapon was readily available, but what about the antitoxin’s availability? Government regulation for the antitoxin to treat an overdose mandates that a police escort deliver it to a hospital where it will be administered by a Center for Disease Control doctor. Wouldn’t we all be much safer if the toxin were as hard to get as the antitoxin and vice versa?

Eric and Bonnie Kaplan, a Florida couple who went to a doctor for Botox injections, nearly died after being given a "fake" botox. Even after receiving the antitoxin, the Kaplans remained completely paralyzed and unable to breathe or function without life support as they struggled for their lives in Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center for nearly six weeks before being moved to a rehabilitation center in Georgia where they were weaned off life support. In Dying to be Young, “A True Story of Survival” Dr. Kaplan shares his ordeal and his spiritual experience that now allows him to feel glad to be alive—wrinkles and all!

Purchase the book, read press releases and articles about the Kaplans, view media footage taken during their recovery and read the first chapter of the book at http://www.dyingtobeyoung.net Dying to be Young, From Botox to Botulism will be available in all bookstores on April 1, 2007. To schedule speaking engagements with Dr. Kaplan, please contact Maryglenn McCombs at maryglenn@maryglenn.com.