That Time I Caused a Silver Mania
On July 16, 2009, I set my readers off on a hunt with an unexpected consequence...
At the time, investors were panicked. While the Great Recession was officially over, many folks still faced the resulting economic struggles.
In December 2008, the Federal Reserve had slashed interest rates to a range between 0% and 0.25% to help the economy grow. But that meant people were barely making anything in their savings accounts. This low rate would stick around for about seven years.
After getting burned when stocks lost half their value during the recession, many folks weren't eager to get back into the markets. But I saw an opportunity that few were talking about...
A revolution that began in 1997 meant silver was disappearing from the industrial marketplace.
Individual folks – concerned with wars, investment bubbles, and mismanaged economies – were buying it up. The metal rose 660% over the following 12 years... while stocks, real estate, and the dollar struggled to do anything.
I believed that the bull market in silver would continue as investors looked for a safe haven for their cash. And so I recommended what I called the single best way to own it...
Junk silver.
That's the term for common coins dated before 1965. They get tagged as "junk" because they have no value to collectors. They circulated widely in pockets and purses and showed a lot of wear. By one estimate, more than 13 billion of these coins were spread around the country at the time.
You could find junk silver in two ways: buying bags of coins from dealers or searching through coin rolls from banks.
Going straight to a dealer was the simpler way to go, but it meant paying a premium. More adventurous folks went around to banks exchanging their cash for the hope of silver coins – paying 50 cents for an old half-dollar coin with $35 worth of silver inside.
I never expected to hear from subscribers all across the U.S. telling me about their success with their own junk-silver hunt. But it was never going to last...
Within four years, only the rare person was lucky enough to find a silver coin or two from a roll. And coin dealers we spoke with said premiums on buying bags of junk silver had soared due to the massive increase in demand. That was the end of one of my favorite ways to add silver to your portfolio.
Even if you can't score a silver half-dollar at the bank anymore, precious metals still belong in your wealth plan.
And in the next 100 days, the U.S. government could launch a historic buying spree to secure tens of billions of dollars' worth of rare earth materials and other critical resources.
This could create a major tailwind for a handful of resource stocks – which could hand you a rare chance to make 5, 10, or even 50 times your money.
Now, let's get to this week's Q&A... And as always, keep sending your comments, questions, and topic suggestions to feedback@healthandwealthbulletin.com. My team and I read every e-mail.
Get Your Caffeine Fix Without the Jitters
Q: I've been attempting to kick my coffee habit after your comments on drinking too much caffeine. I'm ashamed to say I'm one of those who would still be drinking coffee in the evening, but I'd sometimes get that jittery feeling. Is there a better way to get a caffeine fix without the same hit as coffee in the afternoons? – B.R.
A: Thanks for your question, B.R. As you seem to already know, while caffeine can help you get through the day, too much can leave you feeling anxious, shaking, and bouncing off the walls.
The solution is a molecule called L-theanine. You'll find it in tea... especially in green, black, and white teas.
Research has suggested L-theanine can boost alpha brain waves (the kind that happen when you're utterly relaxed but still alert)... and also regulate important neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin.
Scientists have also seen L-theanine reduce folks' stress and anxiety levels and improve sleep. It's also the perfect dance partner for caffeine. Together, L-theanine and caffeine improve attention span, focus, and memory, without all the jitters.
L-theanine can also thwart harmful molecules that can cause oxidative stress and inflammation. One study published just last month found that L-theanine helped repair the intestines in mice with ulcerative colitis, a disease that leaves your intestines riddled with ulcers for years.
So the next time you need a caffeine hit, reach for a cup of tea instead of coffee or soda...
I still have a cup of coffee in the morning to start my day. But later on, I enjoy jasmine-infused green tea and nutty Genmaicha (which has toasted brown rice). But I also enjoy a cup of Gyokuro. Before harvesting, it's grown under the shade for a few weeks, a practice that boosts the L-theanine content and umami flavors and reduces bitter-tasting compounds.
What We're Reading...
- Did you miss it? Own the company the U.S. Navy depends on.
- Something different: Understanding food date labels.
Here's to our health, wealth, and a great retirement,
Dr. David Eifrig and the Health & Wealth Bulletin Research Team
August 7, 2026