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Consumer Health Digest #07-07
February 20, 2007
Current # of subscribers: 11,621
Consumer Health Digest is a free weekly e-mail newsletter edited by
Stephen Barrett, M.D., and cosponsored by NCAHF and Quackwatch. It
summarizes scientific reports; legislative developments; enforcement
actions; news reports; Web site evaluations; recommended and
nonrecommended books; and other information relevant to consumer
protection and consumer decision-making. Donations to help support
this newsletter can be made conveniently through PayPal or Amazon via
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/donations.html###
Gillian McKeith restricted.Pop-nutritionist Gillian McKeith has informally resolved a complaint
to the British Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) by pledging to
stop advertising herself with the title "doctor" based on
correspondence courses from the American College of Holistic
Nutrition, a non-accredited school that is now called Clayton College
of Natural Health (CCNH). The change was triggered by a pending ASA
ruling that McKeith's use of the term "Dr." was likely to mislead and
breached ASA's advertising practice code. [Goldacre B. A menace to
science. Guardian Unlimited, Feb 12, 2007]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/food/Story/0,,2011095,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=1 ASA has jurisdiction over claims in magazine and newspaper ads, radio
and TV commercials, TV shopping channels, billboards, leaflets,
brochures; cinema commercials, direct mail, door drops and circulars,
CD ROMs, DVD and video, faxes, Internet banner and pop-up ads,
commercial e-mail, and SMS text message ads. McKeith's Web sites
still call her "Dr. McKeith," but claims on a company's own sites are
outside of ASA's purview. For a detailed critique of CCNH, see
http://www.quackwatch.org/04ConsumerEducation/Nonrecorg/clayton.html###
"Amazing" weight-loss program isn't.
The Oxygen Network is airing a deceptive 30-minute infomercial for
Amaze Rx, a meal-replacement drink that is claimed to produce weight
loss of up to a pound a day. The program features bariatric surgeon
Richard Alan Carter, D.O., of Richardson, Texas and interviews and
before-and-after photos of users who lost large amounts of weight.
The program is misleading, however, because the users also had
lapband surgery, a procedure in which appetite is decreased by
constricting the upper part of the stomach with an elastic band that
limits the amount of food it can hold. Although this is mentioned
near the beginning of the infomercial, most segments do not make it
clear that the testimonial-givers were lapband recipients, which
means that viewers who do not see the entire program may not realize
this. Meal-replacement drinks can help people lose weight, but the
amount involved is likely to be small and far less than promised for
Amaze Rx. Proving that Amaze Rx has practical use would require a
study of at least a year-and ideally several years-showing that
people who had not undergone lapband surgery lost considerable weight
and kept it off. No such study has been done. A detailed report on
the infomercial is posted at
http://www.infomercialwatch.org/reports/amazerx.shtml###
Food intolerance tests debunked.
A "BBC Watchdog" reporter who underwent five "food intolerance" tests
got wildly contradictory results:
**At two Holland & Barrett stores, he underwent testing with a
questionnaire and a device (Vegatest) that is claimed to measure
electrical responses to various foods. At one store, he was told he
had problems with wheat, cow's milk, cheese, coffee, yeast, sugar and
monosodium glutamate (MSG). At the other store, the same tests found
no problem with cheese or MSG but advised avoidance of potatoes,
tomatoes, and tea.
**A hair analysis from a company called Bionetics identified ten
problem foods, including blackcurrant, elderberry, and paw paw.
**Identical blood samples sent under two fictitious names to a
company called York test yielded contradictory results. One report
said he had no food intolerance; the other reported slight reactions
to cow's milk, grapefruit, lemon, lime, and orange.
A dietitian who commented on the results said (a) there is no
scientific research to support Vega Testing, (b) hair analysis
testing hasn't been proved to work with food intolerance and (c) some
scientific work has been done on the method used by York Test, but
further research is needed to see whether the test can actually
diagnose food intolerance. [Food intolerance tests: Do food
intolerance tests work? Watchdog investigates. BBC Consumer Web site,
Jan 9, 2007]
http://www.bbc.co.uk/consumer/tv_and_radio/watchdog/reports/health_and_beauty/health_20070109_3.shtml The proper way to investigate food intolerance is a careful history
followed by dietary strategies to determine whether suspected foods
are problematic. [Barrett S. Allergies: Dubious diagnosis and
treatment. Quackwatch Feb 19, 2007]
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Tests/allergytests.html###
GAO calls for greater direct-to-consumer ad oversight.
The Government Accountability Office wants the FDA to regulate
direct-to-consumer prescription drug ads more efficiently. The report
noted that in recent years, the number of warning letters per year
has fallen and the average time taken to issue them has increased
greatly. From 1997 through 2001, it took only 2 weeks from the time
letters were drafted to the time they were issued. From 2002 through
2005, it took 4 months. In 2004 and 2005, the warning letters were
issued an average of 8 months after the ads were first disseminated,
by which time about half of them had been discontinued. [Prescription
drugs: Improvements needed in FDA's oversight of direct-to-consumer
advertising. GAO-07-54, Nov 2006]
http://www.pharmwatch.org/reg/dtc/gao_dtc_oversight.pdf###
Other issues of the Digest are accessible through
http://www.ncahf.org/digest06/index.html. For information about the
National Council Against Health Fraud, see
http://www.ncahf.org/about/mission.html. If you enjoy the newsletter,
please recommend it to your friends.
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Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Board Chairman, Quackwatch, Inc.
NCAHF Vice President and Director of Internet Operations
P.O. Box 1747, Allentown, PA 18105
Telephone: (610) 437-1795
http://www.quackwatch.org (health fraud and quackery)
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http://www.chsourcebook.com (consumer health sourcebook)
Editor, Consumer Health Digest
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/chd.htmlDonations to help support Quackwatch can be made conveniently through
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