Weight Loss Pills Get Spanked

The FTC has just issued fines to four marketers of weight loss pills. The fines total $25 million and are for making false claims about how effective these pills are for weight loss.

The four pills include Xenadrine EFX, One A Day Weight Smart, CortiSlim and Trim Spa. The pills will continue to be sold but the companies have been fined for making false claims about them and they have to stop that.

People who bought some of these pills in the past may be able to get their money back.

Some of the weight loss pill marketers contract with celebrities to help sell the pills. For example, TrimSpa hired Anna Nicole Smith. The FTC says; "Testimonials from individuals are not a substitute for science. And that's what Americans need to understand."

Here's an excerpt from an earlier speech by an FTC spokesperson;

With an estimated 70 million Americans trying to lose weight, it is not surprising that weight loss is big business. Unfortunately, too many of the weight loss products advertised to consumers are more likely to reduce the bulk in consumers’ wallets than on their waistlines. Products like “Fat Trapper” and “Exercise in a Bottle” promise fast and easy weight loss with claims that you can “eat what you want and never – ever – ever have to diet again.”

But wait, there’s more! One marketer even promised that its product would work faster than a hunger strike! “Even if you eat nothing you won’t slim down as fast,” the ad promised, claiming the product would burn off “more fat than running 98 miles per week.”

Over the past decade, the FTC has brought over 100 cases targeting deceptive weight loss claims like these, for a variety of pills, potions, patches, and lotions.