# Why were "Carter's Little Liver Pills"  not marketed as laxatives (which they are)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-carters-little-liver-pills-not-marketed-as-laxatives-which-they-are/665653>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [August 8, 2013, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-carters-little-liver-pills-not-marketed-as-laxatives-which-they-are/665653 "2013-08-08T01:01:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\
**Post date:** [August 8, 2013, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-carters-little-liver-pills-not-marketed-as-laxatives-which-they-are/665653/1 "2013-08-08T01:01:58Z")

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Re [Carter’s Little Liver Pills](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carter's_Little_Liver_Pills) I was surprised to see these were basically an effective laxative. Why were they marketed as medicine for your liver?

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> Carter’s Little Liver Pills (Carter’s Little Pills after 1959) were formulated as a patent medicine by Samuel J. Carter of Erie, Pennsylvania in 1868.[1][2] The active ingredient is bisacodyl.

> [@](#):
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> Bisacodyl is marketed under the trade names Dulcolax/Durolax, Fleet, Alophen, Correctol, and Carter’s Little Pills (formerly Carter’s Little Liver Pills[4]) as well as being available generically. It is usually sold as 5 mg tablets, 10 mg suppositories, or 5 mg pediatric suppositories. It is also available as a 1.25 US fluid ounces (37 ml) prepackaged enema containing a 10 mg delivered dose of liquid bisacodyl.

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**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\
**Post date:** [August 8, 2013, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-carters-little-liver-pills-not-marketed-as-laxatives-which-they-are/665653/2 "2013-08-08T01:20:23Z")

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Because 1868-era patent medicines were marketed to cure damn near everything wrong with you, and besides no one used the term “laxative.”

Note that the Time magazine article from 1951 cited in the second footnote said that the pills were “an irritative laxative,” so it’s not like Carter had ever actually fooled anyone.

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**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\
**Post date:** [August 8, 2013, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-carters-little-liver-pills-not-marketed-as-laxatives-which-they-are/665653/3 "2013-08-08T02:07:30Z")

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They \*were \*marketed as laxatives.

[One of the signs says “Constipation”.](http://www.sarahfrisk.com/PostcardsFromTheGreatWar/?p=969)  
[“Carter’s keep the bowels in good order.”](http://www.flickr.com/photos/48796307@N03/4484878454/)  
[“That’s EXHAUSTIPATION - the tiredness caused by constipation!”](http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldadverts/4420231081/)

Also, remember that “biliousness” and “torpid liver” were buzzwords for abdominal discomfort thought to be due to constipation.