Donald Gary Young
| Donald Gary Young | |
|---|---|
 Young in November 2010 | |
| Born |
July 11, 1949 Salmon, Idaho |
| Residence | Lehi, Utah |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Bernadean University |
| Occupation | Former CEO of Young Living, writer |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Home town | Challis, Idaho |
| Spouse(s) |
Donna Jean Datoff (1968[1]–?) Mary Billeter |
| Children | 3 |
| Website |
www |
Donald Gary Young (born June 11, 1949) is an American businessman who is the founder, president and former CEO of Young Living, a Utah-based multi-level marketing company that offers essential oils and related products.
Life and career
Young was born on June 11, 1949 in Salmon, Idaho. He spent his childhood in Challis, Idaho where he graduated from Challis High School in 1967. After graduation, Young moved to Canada with the intention of homesteading in British Columbia.[2]
In 1989, Young started cultivating plants in Spokane, Washington and built two distillation units. In 1993, he founded Young Living Essential Oils, a Lehi, Utah-based company. Young is married to Mary Billeter. They have two sons, Jacob and Josef.
Controversies
In 1982, Young's daughter died in childbirth during a water birth; the cause of death, according to Rachel Lori Young's death certificate[3] was attributed to cardiopulmonary arrest. Another source attributes the death to oxygen deprivation.[4] Young had previously been warned against the practice by health inspectors and prosecutors when he planned a similar underwater birth; state officials advised Young and his then-wife Donna that they could be prosecuted if the infant was harmed.[5]
Washington State police arrested Young for practicing medicine without a license, a charge later leading to conviction.[5][6][7] No criminal charges was taken against Young but an investigation took place into his practices. [8] In early 1983 an undercover police officer approached Young about performing underwater birth. He refused, but offered prenatal care and alternative treatment for her dying mother, whom she said suffering from cancer. Washington State police later arrested Young for practicing medicine without a license, a charge in which Young was convicted.[5][7][6]
From 1986 to 1987, Young was running the Rosarita Beach Clinic in Tijuana, Mexico where it provided blood analyses by mail. The Los Angeles Times reported that analysts for the clinic misdiagnosed samples and failed to differentiate between human, chicken, and cat blood, a difference which a trained hematopathologist would notice immediately.[9]
FDA warning
On September 22, 2014, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a Warning Letter to Young and his company that many of the essential oil products listed on the Young Living website or in its social media are "promoted for conditions that cause them to be drugs ... because they are intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease," yet have no scientific evidence for being effective against any disease.[10]
References
- ↑ "Couple: Don & Donna Young Married 1968 in Idaho". MyTrees. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
- ↑ Gardner, Matt (August 9, 2014). "Therapeutic oils offer alternative approach to healing". Prince Albert Daily Herald. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
- ↑ "Rachel Lori Young Certificate of Death" (PDF).
- ↑ Mills, Judy (October 17, 1982). "Babies: Home-style birthing continues to generate controversy here". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
- 1 2 3 Clark, Doug (October 28, 1986). "Does he relieve people of pain or of their wallets?". Spokane Chronicle. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
- 1 2 Prager, Mike (March 10, 1983). "Arrest result of attempt to police all professions". Spokesman-Review. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
- 1 2 Prager, Mike (March 9, 1983). "Police arrest 'doctor'". The Spokane Chronicle. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
- ↑ Clark, Doug (October 28, 1986). "He seems to cure everything but a poor memory". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
- ↑ Hurst, John (October 23, 1987). "'Patient' Submits Blood (From Cat), Is Given Diagnosis". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
- ↑ Mitchell, LaTonya (22 September 2014). "Inspections, Compliance, Enforcement, and Criminal Investigations, Warning Letters: Young Living 9/22/14". U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Retrieved 17 November 2014.