FTC
Releases Guidance to Media on False Weight-Loss
Claims
Staff
Report on Weight-Loss Advertising Workshop Made
Available
The
staff of the Federal Trade Commission today
announced its “Red Flag” education
campaign to assist media outlets voluntarily
to screen out weight-loss product ads containing
claims that are too good to be true. The announcement
is the culmination of a workshop held on November
19, 2002, and meetings with trade associations
and individual media outlets over the last year.
To support the voluntary initiative, the FTC
released a media reference guide entitled “Red
Flag: Bogus Weight Loss Claims.”
“Unfortunately,
there are way too many ads for scientifically
impossible weight-loss products in the popular
media,” said FTC Chairman Timothy J. Muris.
“The media should institute screening
programs to ‘red flag’ deceitful
weight-loss ads and refuse to run them. To help
media advertising staff identify bogus claims,
we’re providing thousands of free copies
of the ‘Red Flag’ booklet.”
The media reference guide builds upon the FTC’s
staff report, “Deception in Weight-Loss
Advertising Workshop: Seizing Opportunities
and Building Partnerships to Stop Weight-Loss
Fraud,” also released today. The staff
report provides an overview and analysis of
the workshop discussion and relevant public
comments.
Background
– 2002 Weight Loss Product Advertising
Workshop
In
September 2002, the FTC staff issued a report
on weight-loss advertising that concluded that,
despite vigorous FTC law enforcement and consumer
education efforts, fraudulent and misleading
weight-loss advertising was widespread and on
the rise. Following up on that report, in an
effort to identify alternative approaches to
curbing weight-loss fraud, the FTC held a public
workshop on deception in weight-loss product
advertising on November 19, 2002. The goal of
the workshop was to explore new approaches to
stop false weight-loss advertising. Participants
in the workshop included, among others, scientists
with expertise in the study and treatment of
overweight individuals and obesity, weight-loss
industry members, and media representatives.
The workshop consisted of three panels. The
first panel considered whether certain weight-loss
claims, such as claims that promote substantial
weight loss without reducing caloric intake
or increasing exercise, are feasible. The second
panel considered ways to improve industry self-regulation
of weight-loss advertising. The final panel
focused on the feasibility and challenges of
ad screening.
The
Report
The
FTC staff report issued today summarizes the
proceedings of the November 2002 weight-loss
advertising workshop and the pre- and post-workshop
public comments, provides an analysis of the
scientific feasibility of the eight weight-loss
claims considered during the workshop, and offers
recommendations for future action.
The
staff report concludes that the claims are not
scientifically feasible at the current time
for nonprescription drugs, dietary supplements,
creams, wraps, devices, and patches, and that
further guidance would assist the media in screening
out these bogus claims. As a result, to assist
in media screening, the FTC produced the reference
guide released today. The reference guide is
designed so that media outlets can screen out
weight-loss ads through simple facial review,
rather than in-depth investigation.
Media
Guidance
The
centerpiece of the FTC campaign is educational
guidance to the media that identifies seven
common weight-loss claims made for products
available over-the-counter, including nonprescription
drugs, dietary supplements, creams, wraps, devices,
and patches that are scientifically infeasible
at the current time. These claims include:
- Causes
weight loss of two pounds or more a week for
a month, or more without dieting or exercise.
- Causes
substantial weight loss, no matter what or
how much the consumer eats.
- Causes
permanent weight loss (even when the consumer
stops using the product).
- Blocks
the absorption of fat or calories to enable
consumers to lose substantial weight.
- Safely
enables consumers to lose more than three
pounds per week for more than four weeks.
- Causes
substantial weight loss for all users.
- Causes
substantial weight loss by wearing it on the
body or rubbing it into the skin.
“We
know that no publication or station wants to
print or air false weight-loss claims,”
Chairman Muris said. “This booklet provides
specific examples of bogus claims, along with
explanations that will allow media advertising
personnel to avoid bogus weight loss claims
and stop them before they injure consumers.
We encourage the media to use it.”
The
Commission vote to release the staff report
was 5-0.
Copies of the FTC staff
weight-loss report are available from the FTC’s
Web site at
http://www.ftc.gov and also from the FTC’s
Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania
Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580. The FTC
works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent,
deceptive, and unfair business practices in
the marketplace and to provide information to
help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To
file a complaint, or to get free information
on any of 150 consumer topics, call toll-free,
1-877-FTC-HELP (1 877-382-4357), or use the
complaint form at
http://www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters Internet,
telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related
complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure,
online database available to hundreds of civil
and criminal law enforcement agencies in the
U.S. and abroad.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Brenda
Mack
Office of Public Affairs
202-326-2182
STAFF CONTACT:
Richard
Cleland
Bureau of Consumer Protection
202-326-3088
(FTC
Matter No. P034509)
(http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2003/12/weightlossrpt.htm)
