weight loss news
Many Ads for Weight Loss Products are Misleading
Mpls., MN September 23, 2002:
Nearly 40% of weight-loss advertisements studied by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) made at least one claim that was almost certainly false, and about 55% of the ads included at least one claim that was very likely false or lacked adequate evidence of its authenticity according to a report released on Tuesday September 17th.
The report urged Americans, who spend billions of dollars each year on weight-loss products and services, to be skeptical of any ad promising a quick and effortless way to lose weight, and to educate themselves about what it takes to maintain a healthy weight and diet. Statements like "you can eat as much as you want and still lose weight" and "lose all the weight you want without diet or exercise" should be red flags of inflated promises. The FTC also cautioned that consumer testimonials and before-and-after photos, while common in diet commercials, "rarely portray realistic weight loss."
The FTC evaluated 300 advertisements from TV and radio broadcasts including infomercials, print ads in newspapers, magazines, and direct mail pieces, commercial e-mail and Web sites. After comparing ads published in eight national magazines in 1992 with those published in the same magazine in 2001,the FTC investigators concluded the number of weight loss products and the amount of deceptive advertising appears to have increased dramatically over the last decade.
Our Response:
A core philosophy of OPTIFAST® Medical Weight Loss Programs is that for overweight individuals to successfully manage their weight, they need to know the truth. This includes knowing the truth about the factors that contributed to their weight gain, what types of lifestyle changes it will take to lose weight and keep it off, as well as the cost and success rate of any weight control program they chose to follow. To help consumers make educated decisions, OPTIFAST has promoted a Weight Loss Consumers Bill of Rights for nearly two decades (see text below) and was the first commercial weight loss program to publish follow up data showing how well former participants are able to maintain their weight loss. Of the 600 former OPTIFAST weight loss program participants studied, over 50% kept off enough weight to significantly improve their health 2 and 5 years after treatment.
OPTIFAST® Weight Loss Consumer Bill of Rights
You have the right to :
- Ask questions about the potential health risks of a program, its nutritional content, and its psychological-support and educational component.
- Know the actual cost of treatment, including extra products, services, supplements and laboratory tests.
- Inspect the qualifications of program personnel.
- Inspect the program's client dropout rate for moderately and severely overweight clients.
- Be told the duration of the program recommended for you.
- Confidentiality and privacy.
If you are ready to experience the OPTIFAST® difference, Click here to Find an OPTIFAST Clinic near you.