It's the perfect confluence of social media marketing, a new health consciousness and the ubiquitous historical belief that something powerful-tasting, like castor-oil, must be good for you. We're talking tiny wellness shots, with sharp-flavoured ingredients that make you screw up your face in shock – which is the latest burgeoning multi-billion-dollar market. Every label contains a smidgen of proven health benefits of some ingredients, though taken together bit necessarily making any difference. No matter. The adherents firmly believe they do – and the placebo effect takes care of the rest. It all ties in with a move away from sugar and the vilification of the once beloved sweetener. Heck, in Cape Town there's even a clinic to wean people off sugar: the founder (heart transplant pioneer, Chris Barnard's 39-year-old grand-daughter) Karen Thomson is a former cocaine addict who claims sugar is eight times more addictive than her former poison. The point is, sugar today gets a worse press than Jacob Zuma – with the market having turned off energy drinks and onto health boosters. Videos showing shock on people's faces as they down prominently branded "shots" have gone viral. So far nobody's had liver failure – and they remain very sober, believing they're better off. The creative product originators certainly are. – Chris Bateman

Shots Go On a Health Kick

By Anne Marie Chaker

The newcomer in the beverage case probably won't quench your thirst and may not even taste that great.

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