Summary
Overview
Josh and Chuck explore the disturbing story of Linda Burfield Hazard, a self-proclaimed 'fasting specialist' in early 20th century Washington who killed at least 15 patients through extreme starvation while stealing their fortunes. The episode focuses on her most infamous case involving two wealthy British sisters, Claire and Dora Williamson, and examines how medical quackery operated before modern regulations.
Introduction to Linda Hazard's Deadly Practice
The hosts introduce Linda Burfield Perry Hazard, a 19th-century practitioner who ran a so-called sanitarium in Washington state where patients died under her care. She was vehemently opposed to modern medicine and practiced extreme fasting therapy, claiming to be the world's only fasting specialist. By the time she went to trial in 1912, approximately 15 patients had starved to death under her watch, though she had treated hundreds and firmly believed in her methods despite the mounting body count.
- Linda Hazard was a self-described fasting specialist with no medical degree who practiced in late 19th and early 20th century
- At least 15 patients starved to death under her care, and she went to trial for murder in 1912
- Her treatment consisted of three components: intense fasting, hours-long enemas, and violent massage while shouting 'eliminate, eliminate'
- She believed all disease came from undigested food in the body and that fasting would cure everything from alcoholism to depression
" She was killing people. Like, I think 15 patients starved to death under her watch. "
Linda Hazard's Background and Philosophy
Linda Burfield was born in Minnesota in 1867 and claimed a childhood experience with mercury pills made her sick and turned her against modern medicine. She married, divorced, and fell under the influence of Dr. Edward Dewey, a fasting advocate. She eventually opened practices in Minneapolis and later Seattle with her second husband Samuel Hazard, who himself had served jail time for bigamy. Her core belief was that habitual overeating caused all disease and that extreme fasting could cure any ailment.
- Linda Hazard had a traumatic childhood experience with mercury pills that she claimed turned her against modern medicine
- She married Edwin Perry in 1886, had children, then divorced and began her medical practice
- Her philosophy came from Dr. Edward Dewey who preached that all disease comes from habitual overeating
- She married Samuel Hazard in 1903, a swindler who went to jail for bigamy
" She said she was the only fasting specialist in the world. "
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