False claims of weight loss diets and products and reality behind these ads

Is there any reality behind the ads that promise quick and easy weight loss without diet or exercise? There are false claims of weight loss programs and products around the world for many years. Before you spend money on products that promise fast and easy results, weigh the claims carefully.

The cost of weight loss and obesity related health care treatments is staggering…Americans alone spend around $114 billion every year! And even with all this interest in losing weight, we continue to pack on the pounds like never before…

- A whopping 64 percent of U.S. adults are either overweight or
obese…up about eight percent from earlier estimates.

- Among children and teens ages 6-19, 15 percent or almost nine
million are overweight…triple the rate in 1980!

- Nearly one-third of all adults are now classified as obese.

When it comes to evaluating claims for weight loss products, the Federal Trade Commission recommends a healthy portion of skepticism.

Think twice before wasting your money on products that make any of these false claims:
Wouldn't it be nice if—as the ads claim—you could lose weight simply by taking a pill, wearing a patch, or rubbing in a cream? Too bad claims like that are almost always false.

Doctors, dieticians, and other experts agree that the best way to lose weight is to eat fewer calories and increase your physical activity so you burn more energy. A reasonable goal is to lose about a pound a week. For most people, that means cutting about 500 calories a day from your diet, eating a variety of nutritious foods, and exercising regularly.

"Lose weight without diet or exercise!"
Achieving a healthy weight takes work. Take a pass on any product that promises miraculous results without the effort. Buy one and the only thing you’ll lose is money.

“Lose weight no matter how much you eat of your favorite foods!”
Beware of any product that claims that you can eat all you want of high-calorie foods and still lose weight. Losing weight requires sensible food choices. Filling up on healthy vegetables and fruits can make it easier to say no to fattening sweets and snacks.

“Lose weight permanently! Never diet again!”
Even if you’re successful in taking the weight off, permanent weight loss requires permanent lifestyle changes. Don’t trust any product that promises once-and-for-all results without ongoing maintenance.

“Block the absorption of fat, carbs, or calories!”
Doctors, dieticians, and other experts agree that there’s simply no magic non-prescription pill that will allow you to block the absorption of fat, carbs, or calories. The key to curbing your craving for those “downfall foods” is portion control. Limit yourself to a smaller serving or a slimmer slice.

“Lose 30 pounds in 30 days!”
Losing weight at the rate of a pound or two a week is the most effective way to take it off and keep it off. At best, products promising lightning-fast weight loss are false. At worst, they can ruin your health.

“Everybody will lose weight!”
Your habits and health concerns are unique. There is simply no one-size-fits-all product guaranteed to work for everyone. Team up with your health care provider to design a personalized nutrition and exercise program suited to your lifestyle and metabolism.

“Lose weight with our miracle diet patch or cream!”
You’ve seen the ads for diet patches or creams that claim to melt away the pounds. Don’t believe them. There’s nothing you can wear or apply to your skin that will cause you to lose weight.

Source: Advice from the Federal Trade Commission

Useful links and resources:

* How Eating Can Help You With Weight Loss?

* 7 Bad Eating Habits You Should Change Immediately

Effects of food and beverage marketing on adult and child obesity

There is a link between marketing of unhealthy fast food and obesity among adults and children. How food marketing is effecting our new generation and how it is related to obesity, this article provides you a vivid picture of some research studies alongwith facts and statistics.

- 22 million children around the world are overweight before they start going to school. The global childhood obesity epidemic is focusing attention on the effects of food and beverage marketing.
A recent report published by the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concluded that marketing of energy-dense foods and fast food outlets is a "probable" cause of increasing overweight and obesity among the world's children.

Food marketing to children is widespread. The food and beverage industries spend more than $10 billion per year to market to children in the United States. One of the goals of marketing is branding to encourage children to recognize and differentiate particular products and logos.

By 2 years of age, children may have beliefs about specific brands,4 and 2- to 6-year-olds can recognize familiar brand names, packaging, logos, and characters and associate them with products,5-8 especially if the brands use salient features such as bright colors, pictures, and cartoon characters.
By middle childhood, most children can name multiple brands of child-oriented products.
Even among very young children, awareness and recognition translate into product requests, begging and nagging for specific product names and brands.

UFC, the French consumer organisation, found in their survey, that 77% of children preferred advertised breakfast cereals

The Greek organisation KEPKA conducted research among 12-15 year olds, which showed that they started eating potato crisps after being advertised by a celebrity.

A survey of consumption patterns of children between 4 and 12 in the Netherlands found that TV adverts contribute to an unhealthy diet.

They are less able than adults to fully understand that the purpose of advertising is not to inform but to persuade, and to ultimately sell a product.

Studies show that children are much more likely to want to eat food that comes in branded packaging than food with no branding – even if it is the same product.

A study of 3 to 5 year olds showed that over 75% of children preferred French fries in McDonalds branded wrapping, compared to the just over 10% who preferred fries from plain packaging.
The food was exactly the same!

The same study also showed that children with more TVs in their home were more likely to prefer the McDonalds-branded food packaging.

WHO survey: An extensive survey of the evidence from the World Health Organization (WHO) confirms this.

The WHO report on Marketing of Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages to Children explains that advertising promoting foods high in fat, sugar or salt directly influence children’s attitudes and behaviour – they want and ultimately eat these unhealthy foods.

This can be a direct influence with children buying the foods, sweets and drinks themselves or asking their parents for these foods.

junkfoodgeneration.org is the Consumers International (CI) campaign to stop the marketing of unhealthy food to children. Join at the site and

More facts and statistics:

Adult obesity
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2005:
1.6 billion adults were overweight
at least 400 million adults were obese
In 2015 the WHO predicts there will be:

2.3 billion adults overweight
more than 700 million obese.
According to the World Watch Institute - there are now more obese adults than underweight adults in the world.

Childhood obesity
According to the International Obesity Taskforce (IOTF):

22 million children under five years old are overweight
1 in 10 children are overweight – a total of 155 million
around 30 to 40 million of those children are actually obese

ADVERTISING TRICKS

In 2006 the biggest companies spending on advertising came to:

$7.8 billion on food
$4 billion on soft drinks
$1.1 billion on confectionary
For every $1 the WHO spends on trying to improve the nutrition of the world’s population, $500 is spent by the food industry in promoting processed food.

* More reports:

- Effects of Fast Food Branding on Young Children's Taste Preferences

- The WHO report on Marketing of Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages to Children explains that advertising promoting foods high in fat, sugar or salt directly influence children’s attitudes and behaviour – they want and ultimately eat these unhealthy foods.
- Download pdf report

Boost your metabolism rate to stay slim

Everybody wants to stay fit, healthy and slim, but for fat or over weight persons, it is sometimes very difficult to keep their weights in control. A lot of diet or food consciousness is required to stay slim. But there are some tips that can help us boost our metabolism rate to keep our weight in control.

Why metablism rate is concerned in staying slim?

The answer lies in 2 words, which are "ENERGY CONVERSION"

What is "Energy Conversion"?

"Food broken down in the digestive tract is absorbed into the bloodstream and dispersed into cells throughout the body where it fuels energy. In lean people, heat production goes up by as much as 40 percent after a meal. In overweight people, it may rise ten percent or less, which means food energy is stored as fat rather than burned."

Tips to boost your metabolism rate!

There are natural nutritional supplements you can take to help activate your nervous system and boost your metabolism rate so that dietary fat is converted to energy, not stored as body fat:

* Green Tea contains polyphenols, which have powerful antioxidant properties. But, the real “kicker” is its ability to help you burn calories. In a recent study, participants taking green tea extract burned an additional 500 calories a week compared to those taking caffeine or a placebo. I recommend drinking at least three eight-ounce cups daily (to provide roughly 240-320 mg of polyphenols). If you prefer not to drink the tea, try: 300-400 mg daily of green tea extract (Be sure the product is caffeine-free and standardized to 80 percent total polyphenol and 55 percent epigallocatechin.); or 100 mg of green tea polyphenols, taken three times daily. (This is caffeine free.)

L-carnitine. It has been know to keep your hear healthy. But it is found in helping overweight peoples, speeding their metabolism and drop extra pounds. In many cases it is observed that they had greater energy, and could exercise more frequently and vigorously.

L-carnitine is an amino acid that picks up fatty acids in your blood and takes them to your cells where they’re used for the production of ATP, your most readily available form of energy.

Many women are carnitine-deficient, especially vegetarians and those in mid- life and beyond. Red meat is the best source of carnitine, but too much red meat can disrupt the acid/alkaline balance that is so important to overall good health.
Doctors recommend taking 1,000 mg of L-carnitine a day.


Calcium & Magnesium. Doctors recommend you take both calcium and magnesium to help counteract acidity when trying to lose weight. This will bring your body back to an alkaline state, which gives you the necessary oxygen to efficiently break down and get energy from the foods you eat. Plus, magnesium helps promote a healthy inflammatory response in your body. If you’re trying to lose weight, take at least 1,000 – 1,500 mg of calcium and 500 – 750 mg of magnesium per day.

These tips are courtesy of Dr. Susan M. Lark, M. D, having a 28 years of clinical experience, is one of the foremost authorities in the fields of clinical nutrition and preventive medicine.

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