Spotting Health Fraud
Any over-the-counter product offering a cure for disease in pill form
is probably a fraud. Fraud is the intentional deception to cause a person
to give up property or some lawful right through trickery, cheating
or artifice. The leading source of fraud in this country is in the area
of health and nutrition. There is money to be made on false hopes and
the desire to be in better health.
Fraud often travels while attractively cloaked in terms like "marketing"
and "advertising." Your best defense is education. Americans
waste billions annually on bogus treatments and the promise of simple
solutions to serious health problems. Health cons, quacks and frauds
have been around since the beginning of time. The traveling medicine
show now moves with the greatest of ease via the Internet.
The health food store is filled with bottles, tubes and vials that
offer little more than false hope. Learn to question anyone selling
a product you did not ask for. Most of the people selling these products
are "salesmen" not doctors, nutritionists or even people who
care about your health. The Mayo Clinic Health Letter offers these strategies
for recognizing worthless treatments. Ask:
- Does it promise too much too easily? Unproven remedies are often
promoted as cure-alls, from preventing aging to curing impotence.
- Does it claim immediate or guaranteed results? Few medical treatments
produce immediate benefits for chronic conditions. And even proven
therapies cannot always guarantee better health.
- Does it include a secret or exclusive formula? Legitimate therapies
evolve from data collected and reviewed by many scientists.
- Are testimonials the only proof it works? Unproven remedies are
typically endorsed by "satisfied customers." These people
may be paid for their comments or lulled by the power of suggestion
into the belief they were "cured."
- Does it offer a money-back guarantee? A guarantee is an effective
ploy to get you to buy a product. But do not expect anyone to respond
to your request for a refund.
If you question a medical treatment, discuss it with your doctor or
other health-care professional. Or write to the National Council Against
Health Fraud, P. O. Box 1276, Loma Linda, California 92354.
June
2000
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