HOME  •  HEALTH  •  LIBRARY  •  AREAS  •  CENTERS  •  BOARDS  •  CHATS  •  JOIN FREE

Top Health Frauds

A disturbing number of Americans seem to be entrusting their health care to unqualified individuals and buying unproven --and sometimes dangerous--remedies from them. They have entered--at their own risk--the world of health quackery. Difficult to curtail, health frauds, like crab grass, sprout up here, there and everywhere.

"Quack promoters have learned to stay one step ahead of the laws either by moving from state to state or by changing their corporate names," says Pat Kuntze, FDA's deputy associate commissioner for consumer affairs. "As an agency we concentrate on the most dangerous abuses. But health fraud is bigger than any one organization can deal with," he added.

Health fraud is indeed big business in this country. Medical World News estimates that Americans spend about $27 billion a year on quack products or treatments. And FDA estimates that 38 million Americans have used a fraudulent health product within the past year. These products are not without risk. According to an agency survey, 1 out of l0 people who try quack remedies is harmed by side effects.

Here is FDA's list of the top health frauds. Bear in mind, though, health fraud is by no means limited to these alone.

1. Fraudulent Arthritis Products. Arthritis affects some 40 million Americans, 95 percent of whom "are likely to engage in some form of self-treatment even after they have seen a physician," says the National Council Against Health Fraud's president, William Jarvis. Copper bracelets, Chinese herbal remedies, large doses of vitamins, snake or bee venom just don't work. Because the symptoms of arthritis go into remission periodically, individuals who try these unproven remedies may associate the remedy with the remission.

2. Spurious Cancer Clinics. These clinics, many of them in Mexico, promise miracle cures. Treatments use unproven and ineffective substances such as Laetrile (derived from apricot kernels) and vitamins and minerals. People who go to these clinics often abandon legitimate cancer treatments. This is particularly tragic in the case of young children because some of their cancers (such as leukemia or Hodgkin's disease) are highly curable through legitimate treatment.

3. Bogus AIDS Cures. Victims of incurable diseases are especially vulnerable to the promises of charlatans. AIDS is a prime example. Underground or "guerrilla clinics" offering homemade treatments have sprung up in the United States, the Caribbean, and Europe.

"When you hear the words, Here's the latest cure for AIDS, all you have to do is hand over the money,' beware," says Gary Lambert, vice chairman of AIDS Action, Baltimore. There is no cure for AIDS yet--proposed treatments such as massive doses of antibiotics, typhus vaccine, or herbal tea made from the bark of Brazilian trees are all unproven. Lambert recommends that people with questions about AIDS remedies check with AIDS clinical trial units located in leading hospitals throughout the country. Or call the FDA/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease's hot line at 1-800-TRIALS-A. This hot line provides information on NIH-funded studies at hospitals throughout the country.

4. Instant Weight-Loss Schemes. With an estimated 25 percent of the American population overweight, quacks selling weight-loss gimmicks have a sizable market for their wares. Unfortunately, there is no quick way to lose weight. According to National Council Against Health Fraud's Jarvis, fraudulent weight-loss schemes are usually heralded by full-page newspaper ads promising rapid, dramatic and easy weight loss or by single news column ads that look like news stories except that the word "advertisement" is written across the top. Radio and TV ads typically list 800 telephone numbers to facilitate credit card charges and private parcel deliveries. This allows promoters to circumvent the postal service's laws against mail fraud, Jarvis says.

Some of the latest gimmicks in instant weight-loss plans have included skin patches, herbal capsules, grapefruit diet pills, and Chinese magic weight-loss earrings.

5. Fraudulent Sexual Aids. Products promoted to enhance libido and sexual pleasure are not new. FDA officials recently cracked down on an entrepreneur selling Chinese "Crocodile Penis Pills" purportedly prepared according to a 2,000-year-old formula for rejuvenating male sexual prowess.

FDA says no nonprescription drug ingredients have been proven safe or effective as aphrodisiacs and has acted to ban these products. Over-the-counter products that claim to increase the size of a man's penis or cure impotence or frigidity don't work. Serious health risks are associated with the use of such purported aphrodisiacs as cantharides ("Spanish fly"), a chemical derived from the dried bodies of beetles. Other ingredients of similar OTC products include strychnine (a poison), mandrake and yohimbine (poisonous plants), licorice, zinc, and the herbs anise and fennel.

Although male sex hormones, available by prescription, do influence libido and sexual performance, they have potentially serious side effects and should only be used under a physician's supervision. The agency advises that people with sexual problems should not attempt to medicate themselves but rather should seek treatment by a medical professional.

6. Quack Baldness Remedies and Other Appearance Modifiers. Entrepreneurs make millions of dollars trying to convince consumers to buy their versions of the fountain of youth, whether it be a remedy to grow hair or prevent its loss, a cream that removes wrinkles, or a device to "develop" the bust. Only one prescription product has been approved for growing hair on balding men: Rogaine (minoxidil). And this approval is only for a specific type of baldness. FDA has acted to ban the sale of any nonprescription hair cream, lotion, or other external product claiming to grow hair or prevent baldness. None of these products has been shown to work.

Clinical studies suggest that one product, Retin-A, may be effective in lessening certain kinds of wrinkles, and some physicians prescribe it for this purpose. This is legitimate because it is approved for treating acne and doctors may thus prescribe it for other uses. However, consumers should be aware that FDA has not evaluated safety and effectiveness data for the drug's use as a wrinkle remover.

So-called breast developers have also been used by millions of women who want larger breasts. But, as the experts point out, these devices do not increase breast size.

7. False Nutritional Schemes. Many Americans whose diets are not nutritionally balanced may be persuaded that some "perfect" food or product will make up for all their nutritional shortcomings. Various food products--such as bee pollen, over-the-counter herbal remedies, and wheat germ capsules--are promoted as sure-fire cures for various diseases. Though usually not harmful, neither have these products been proven beneficial.

8. Unproven Use of Muscle Stimulators. Muscle stimulators are a legitimate medical device approved for certain conditions--to relax muscle spasms, increase blood circulation, prevent blood clots, and rehabilitate muscle function after a stroke. But within the past few years health spas and figure salons have promoted new uses. They claim that muscle stimulators can remove wrinkles, perform face lifts, reduce breast size, and remove cellulite. Some even claim these handy little devices can reduce one's beer belly without the aid of sit-ups! FDA considers promotion of muscle stimulators used for these conditions to be fraudulent.

9. Candidiasis Hypersensitivity. Candida (also known as monilia) is a fungus found naturally in small amounts in the warm moist areas of the body such as the mouth, intestinal tract, and vagina. When the body's resistance is weakened, the fungus can multiply and infect the skin or mucous membranes. More serious infection occurs in individuals whose resistance has been weakened by other illnesses.

However, some promoters assert that approximately 30 percent of Americans suffer from "candidiasis hypersensitivity," which they say triggers everything from fatigue to constipation, diarrhea, depression and anxiety, impotence, infertility, and menstrual problems. To correct the problem, promoters recommend anti-fungal drugs and vitamin and mineral supplements.

The American Academy of Allergy and Immunology says the existence of such a syndrome has not been proven and the numerous symptoms credited to "candidiasis hypersensitivity" could be due to any number of illnesses.

How to Spot a Quack

Remember the rule of thumb for evaluating health claims: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

FDA officials and Dr. Stephen Barrett, an author and noted expert on quackery, have analyzed promoters' statements and offer the following "translations" to help you spot the unproven or false claims.

• The promoter claims that most doctors are "butchers," that the medical community is against him or her, and that the government will not accept this wonderful discovery. Anyone discovering a cure for sterility, cancer, AIDS, or other serious conditions would likely be showered with prizes and grant money and nominated for a Nobel prize. Legitimate doctors don't conspire to suppress disease cures, says Barrett.
• The promoter cites testimonials and anecdotes from satisfied customers to support claims. These "satisfied" users may never have had the disease the product is supposed to cure, may be paid spokespersons, or may simply not exist. "Most single episodes of disease simply disappear with the passage of time, and most chronic ailments have symptom-free periods [that may be mistaken as evidence of a cure], says Barrett.
• The promoter uses a computer-scored questionnaire for diagnosing "nutrient deficiencies." Computers used for such tests are programmed to recommend supplements for virtually everyone, regardless of their symptoms or medical condition.
• The promoter claims that the product will make weight loss easy. Beware of this claim. There is no easy way to lose weight--no magic pill, no magic device. Losing weight requires the self-discipline to eat less and exercise more. Any product claims that promise to trim you down and tone you up effortlessly are false, says FDA.
• The promoter promises quick dramatic cures or claims that the product is based on a "secret formula" available only from this one company. Legitimate scientists share their knowledge so that their peers can review their data. Once a treatment is proven effective, many practitioners in the medical community are free to use it--not just one person or company.
• The treatment is promoted only in the back pages of magazines, over the phone, or by mail-order, newspaper ads in the format of news stories or 30-minute commercials in talk show format. Results of studies on bona fide treatments are reported first in medical journals. If information ads for a treatment appear only via these other means it's probably because the treatment doesn't pass scientific muster.

  If you think you've been taken in by a quack treatment, speak out. Complain to the following organizations:
  

• About a product that is mislabeled or misrepresented, or is otherwise harmful: FDA, Consumer Affairs and Information, 5600 Fishers Lane, HFC-110, Rockville, Md. 20857 (or look for the local FDA office listed in the telephone directory under U.S. Department of Health and Human Services); your particular state Attorney General's office; the Federal Trade Commission, Correspondence Branch, Room 692, Sixth and Pennsylvania Avenues, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580; and the newspaper, magazine, or TV or radio station running the ad.
• About a quack product ordered by mail: U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Chief Postal Inspector, 475 L'Enfant Plaza, Washington, D.C. 20260 (or check with your local postmaster).
• If you want to take legal action against a quack, you can get help from the National Council Against Health Fraud. This organization can refer you to an experienced lawyer. The council also offers a registry of expert witnesses, information on defense witnesses, and a list of unproven, fraudulent, and potentially dangerous treatments. Contact Stephen Barrett, M.D., P.O. Box 33008, Kansas City, Mo. 64114; phone (610) 437-1795.

BG 96-8

U. S. Food and Drug Administration
FDA Backgrounder
November 6, 1996

 Home  |  Help  |  Feedback  |  Privacy Policy  |  Register  |  Contact Us  |  Visitor Survey  |  Subscribe to HealthMail  |  Advertising  |  About MDAdvice.com

Copyright © The Online Medical Network Inc. All rights reserved. All material provided by MDAdvice.com is intended for informative purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your physician with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your health. Use of this site indicates your agreement with the Terms of Use.