A Free Public Service
SCAMS BULLETING Host Jay White is an inactive attorney in San Mateo County, California.
April 4, 2022
HEALTH PRODUCTS SCAMS
Courtesy US Food & Drug Administration
Bogus product! Danger! Health fraud alert!
You will never see these warnings on health products, but that’s what you ought to be thinking when you see claims like “miracle cure,” “guaranteed results,” or “vaccine alternative.”
Health fraud scams have been around for hundreds of years and play on the desire for a quick or miracle cure. The snake-oil salesmen of old have morphed into the deceptive, high-tech marketers of today, preying on people’s desires for easy solutions to difficult health problems—including Alzheimer’s, arthritis, cancer, diabetes, memory loss, sexual performance, weight loss, and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), influenza and other infectious diseases.
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a health product is fraudulent if it is deceptively promoted as being effective against a disease or health condition, but not scientifically proven safe and effective for that purpose.
Fraudulent products not only can’t deliver on their baseless promises—they could cause serious injury, or even death. Besides wasting money and delaying potentially life-saving diagnosis and scientifically tested and proven treatments, fraudulent products sometimes contain hidden drug ingredients that can be harmful when unknowingly taken by consumers.
Scammers are clever:
Scammers promote their products with savvy marketing, often using tactics that target specific populations via the web and email, but also by word-of-mouth, newspapers, magazines, TV, and direct mail. Health fraud scams run rampant on social media sites and closed messaging apps, such as Signal, Viber, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger — even local convenience stores.
Rip Off Tips
Here are tips to help you identify rip-offs:
*One product does it all. Be suspicious of products that claim to cure a wide range of diseases. The agency continues to send warning letters and take enforcement action as appropriate against companies marketing fake cure-all products. These miracle cures don’t exist – they’re bogus – and the only thing these companies are selling is false hope.
*Personal “success” testimonials. Fake success stories, such as, “It cured my diabetes” or “It immediately stopped my COVID-19 infection,” are easy to make up and are not a substitute for scientific evidence. Reviews found on popular online marketplaces and social media can be fake.
*Quick fixes. Few diseases or conditions can be treated quickly, even with legitimate products. Beware of language such as, “Lose 30 pounds in 30 days,” “protects from viral infections,” or “eliminates skin cancer in days.”
*“All natural” cure or treatment. Don’t be fooled by descriptions like “all-natural cure.” Such phrases are often used in health fraud as an attention-grabber to suggest that a product is safer than conventional treatments.
*“Miracle cure.” Alarms should go off when you see this claim or others like it such as, “new discovery,” “guaranteed results,” or “secret ingredient.”
*Conspiracy theories. Claims like “This is the cure our government or Big Pharma doesn’t want you to know about” are used to distract consumers from the obvious, common-sense questions about the so-called miracle cure.
Even with these tips, fraudulent health products are not always easy to spot. If consumers are tempted to buy an unproven product or one with questionable claims, they should check with their doctor or other health care professional first.
Submit Adverse Event Reports to the FDA
Consumers experiencing adverse reactions to a product should submit voluntary reports to the FDA using: http://www.fda.gov.
Call FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 to report by telephone.
#
scamsbulletin.blog 