February  2007

2006 Slim Chance Awards Announced
The Slim Chance Awards are presented annually during the last week in January jointly by the Healthy Weight Network, the Society for Nutrition Education and the National Council Against Health Fraud. These awards are given to recognize the worst weight loss schemes and products foisted on the public during the past year. The intent is to educate the public and expose the worst offenders of those who promote weight-loss at any cost.

“There are countless scams out there that promise quick weight loss with no effort. Some cause injury and death,” notes Francie M. Berg, licensed nutritionist and adjunct professor at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine, in announcing the 18th annual Slim Chance Awards. “In a dangerous new trend they now target children.”  Alison Hoppin, MD, of the Weight Center Massachusetts General Hospital, agrees. “Children are not just small adults, and their responses to drugs or toxins may be quite different. This raises serious concerns about the effects that ingesting these products could have in young children.

Worst Claim: ChitoGenics for claiming their spokesperson, radio personality Tom Martino, is a creditable consumer advocate when in reality he received kickbacks to tout their product with the ridiculous claim that you can lose 20 pounds in one week without dieting.

Worst Product : PediaLean This product is advertised to help overweight children lose weight. However, its active ingredient
glucomannan is known to swell in the body and can form an obstructive mass in the esophagus or gastrointestinal tract. PediaLean, along with five other weight loss products, has been ordered by the Federal Trade Commission to pay $3 million to settle deceptive claim violations.

Most Outrageous Claim: Isacleanse. The detox idea is quite a scam, making up a fake problem, then selling the solution. Ads for Isacleanse warn of dangerous toxins building up, which will be prevented with use of this product. No such need exists as the human body is self-cleaning. Interestingly, this product web page offers a get-rich-quick scheme on deceiving others about the need to detoxify.

Worst Gimmick: Magic Ear Staple. For only $75, you get someone to use a staple gun to shoot a staple into the band of cartilage in your upper ear. There, supposedly, it presses on an acupressure point that curbs appetite. If it does indeed curb the appetite, this could be because you are too ill to eat due to a severe infection that is likely to occur when staples become embedded in the ear. This product has now been banned in Florida.