In the first case of its kind, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) took action against a diet pill seller for both making false claims and paying to juice their standing on Amazon with fake positive reviews.
The fruit of garcinia cambogia has been hailed by some as a powerful weight loss supplement. Of course, there’s no conclusive scientific evidence to support this—although there is some indication that in rare cases it may lead to liver failure, which led the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue a notice about a product containing the active ingredient—which is why most purveyors of junk diet pills tend to make their efficacy claims vague. Cure Encapsulations, which the FTC ruled against yesterday, had no such modesty, instead stating that the extract in question “Literally BLOCKS FAT From Forming.”
What differentiates this from every other fake weight loss panacea fiasco is that Naftula Jacobowitz, the owner/operator of Cure Encapsulations, “paid a website, amazonverifiedreviews.com, to create and post Amazon reviews of their product,” according to the FTC—demanding his products retain an average rating of 4.3 stars. As the world’s largest e-commerce marketplace, Amazon has become ground zero for cutthroat tactics in achieving greater product visibility—among which fake reviews are a well-worn method. According to one Pew Research study, the majority of Americans sometimes check online reviews, though only around half believe they’re trustworthy.
Unsurprisingly, Jacobowitz was previously sued by another Amazon seller in 2016 for, among other things submitting “false negative feedback and/or other false complaints to Amazon.com,” which the plaintiff claimed caused her to lose the coveted Amazon ‘Buy Box,’ a piece of screen real estate associated with higher sales. (The case was settled via permanent injunction in September of 2016.)
Amazon itself has taken legal action over the years on multiple occasions against entities abusing its review system, but this case marks the first time the FTC has involved itself in these matters. “We welcome the FTC’s work in this area. Amazon invests significant resources to protect the integrity of reviews in our store because we know customers value the insights and experiences shared by fellow shoppers,” an Amazon spokesperson told Gizmodo. “Even one inauthentic review is one too many.”
Recommended in the ruling, and pending judgement in New York’s Eastern District Court, are a variety of stipulations against Jacobowitz’s Cure Encapsulations. His company would be required to notify prior customers of the claims against it and identify the paid reviews for Amazon. The company would also no longer be able to make “weight-loss, appetite-suppression, fat-blocking, or disease-treatment claims” about products without “reliable scientific evidence in the form of human clinical testing,” and face a largely suspended fine of $12.8 million (£9.65 million).
There are lots of different weight loss tea brands on the market, some sold in loose leaf form and others in teabags. Ingredients vary widely from brand to brand, but they can contain anything from regular old caffeine, to fennel, which is used to help with digestive problems, dandelion leaf which is thought to be a diuretic, burdock plant which is thought to increase urine production and senna, which is a laxative used to treat constipation.
Do weight loss teas actually work? It’s hard to put them all under one umbrella and say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ – as their claims also vary, but many medical professionals have discredited detox teas, as they are targeted at impressionable young women as a quick fix for weight loss and some dangerous side effects have been reported by users, including as dizziness, cramping, stomach pains and uncontrollable diarrhoea.
Last year Choice reported that weight loss teas fall into a grey area when it comes to regulation, at what’s known as the food-medicine interface, so they aren’t being suitably classified or regulated. This means that some teas are making unsubstantiated claims about what they can do.
How do you choose a tea? Firstly, know that if you want to lose weight, skinny teas are not a substitute for healthy weight loss through healthy eating and taking exercise. Secondly, experts say regular or long-term use of detox teas could be harmful to your body and digestive system, so always check with your GP first, particularly if you have a health condition or are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Because skinny teas contain a laxative effect, there is some evidence that they can significantly reduce the effectiveness of the contraceptive pill, with women reporting that they have become pregnant as a result.
Here are some of the most popular teas on the market:
10. Skinny Me Tea $39 for a 14 day pack
Marketed as the first Australian-made detox tea, Skinny Me’s Morning Cleanse tea is designed to be consumed once every day with breakfast and then one cup of Evening Cleanse tea every second night before bed.
These teas are an energising, refreshing and de-bloating tea which contain a long list of ingredients including senna, sencha and green tea extract.
Shop around on the site and you will find that for maximum health benefits, Skinny Me Teatox ‘should be consumed in conjunction with a healthy balanced diet and exercise’ such as their recommended eating and exercise plan.
This Kardashian-approved skinny tea has some decent reviews on amazon, with many people saying it tastes nice and lives up to its appetite suppressant claim, though others says is does nothing. Fit tea is designed to lower your hunger for 4-6 hours, it contains electrolytes and garcinia cambogia extract that’s used in many weight loss products as it’s said to prevent fat storage, control appetite, and increase exercise endurance.
For results FitTea says you should drink 1 cup a day, some users report increased heart rate and advise cutting out your morning coffee.
This Kardashian-approved skinny tea has some decent reviews on amazon, with many people saying it tastes nice and lives up to its appetite suppressant claim, though others says is does nothing. Fit tea is designed to lower your hunger for 4-6 hours, it contains electrolytes and garcinia cambogia extract that’s used in many weight loss products as it’s said to prevent fat storage, control appetite, and increase exercise endurance.
For results FitTea says you should drink 1 cup a day, some users report increased heart rate and advise cutting out your morning coffee.
A fortnight-long detox to boost your energy, promote fullness and help reduce your appetite, Bae Tea is another US company promising to transform your body with a cuppa. These pyramid teabags contain a blend of garcinia cambogia extract, guarana seed, rooibos an green tea leaf and other herbs.
They also sell other teas for wellbeing, beauty, mood and energy.
The instructions are to drink two tea bags per day, once in the morning, and once in the evening to boost your metabolism, flush out toxins, reduce bloating and burn fat. Teatox Australia’s tea contains radish seed, oolong Tea, hawthorn, lotus leaf and cassia seed, and claims to be free from both caffeine and laxatives, although cassia and oolong are both thought to have caffeine and laxative properties.
This Instagram-friendly skinny tea company has been in business for five years in Australia and ticks all the bases on using cute and local influencers to promote its products and comes in lovely packaging.
A powerful tea “to combat your modern lifestyle” this loose leaf tea includes flaxseed and liquorice root to clear things out and ‘sweep away yesterday’!
Not marketed as a long-term weight loss tea, this is more of a brew for after you’ve gone overboard at the buffet table dinner or when you’ve eaten rich food and need some digestive relief.
Not a fan of tea? Skinny Mint offer fat burning coffee and hot chocolate as well as teatox teas. The minimum commitment for Skinny Mint is a 28 day plan, unless you just buy the Night Cleanse teas which come in a pack of 14, but the 28 day plan is the most popular purchase.
Skinny Mint is a 2 step tea cleanse, one in the morning and the evening formula every other night, and it’s claims are to reduce bloating, boost your energy and purify your body. The night formula contains senna leaves and psyllium husk, both ingredients have laxative qualities.
Your favourite artisan tea company also makes a blend that’s designed to aid digestion and help your tummy. This loose leaf blend contains fennel, juniper berries, stinging nettle, sweet blackberry leaves, lemongrass, marigold petals, liquorice root, spearmint, and rose buds.
It has a 4.8 stars average rating by customers, with most saying it soothes the too-full feeling after a big meal.
@flattummyco boast over 1.7 million followers on Instagram and offer teas, shakes and supplements on their website. The US company also offer the controversial appetite suppressants lollipops, which came under fire from nutritionists after they were promoted by Kim Kardashian (in a since deleted post).
Flat Tummy Tea is a cleanse that is designed to cleanse, de-bloat and decrease water retention. It’s an immensely popular brand, with thousands of reviews and before and after photos on their site. “30 days of exercise clean eating combined with #flattummytea Lost a total of 4 kilos 5 cm off my stomach in total! I’m very happy with the product, but I have also put a lot of work in with it too,” says one user.
Bootea say they will never be portrayed as magic formulas or miracle slimming aids and that ‘All of our formulas should be combined with a healthy, balanced diet and regular exercise for the best possible results.’
So if you want to add some oomph to your healthy eating kick, daytime tea bags contain Chinese Oolong tea, ginger root, fennel seeds and mate leaves among others, while the evening cleanse bags are made with laxative-effect senna leaves, peppermint, fenugreek seeds and burdock root.
My family have all been going to a local Structural Chiropractor for the last few months and finally a few weeks ago I dove in too. She took some pictures and aligned my body, and sent me for X-rays and finally after all this let me know that I had some real back problems that she is working on aligning.
Although I don’t have bulging disks I do have a lot of decay and thinning in the discs which is causing pain and mobility problems.
A bulging disc, also known as a herniated or ruptured vertebral disc, is a common problem. It happens when one of the spinal discs is pushed out of its normal alignment, causing part of the disc to bulge out. This can cause a lot of pain.
The discs are soft cushions that separate each of the bony spinal vertebrae to give the spine flexibility and prevent the vertebral bones from being damaged by rubbing against each other. They also cushion the spinal nerves that surround the spinal cord.
What Is A Bulging Disc?
What Is A Bulging Disc?
These discs, like many of the structures of our body, tend to become more brittle and less flexible with age. In many people, the discs begin to deteriorate from around age 30.
Just about everyone will have less flexible discs by the time they reach the age of 50 or 60.
Less flexibility means that the discs are more easily damaged. So bulging disc pain is something that many people will suffer from as they grow older.
The reason that a bulging disc is so painful is that often times, when the disc is pushed out of alignment, the spinal nerves can be pinched.
This is especially likely if the person already suffers from spinal stenosis, where the space around the spinal cord and nerves has gradually narrowed over the years. This kind of thing can be happening gradually without a person knowing, until pain begins at a certain point.
Herniated Discs
Herniation of the disc may happen suddenly, for example when a person lifts something heavy or has an accident or a fall. Then the pain is likely to come on suddenly and severely.
In other cases it may happen gradually over time, as the spine is strained over and over. In those cases, the pain may be occasional, becoming more and more of a problem until the person seeks treatment.
What kind of pain from a Bulging Disc?
Sufferers from a bulging disc will often experience pain like an electric shock that results from the compression of the spinal nerve. This shock type pain may be felt going down your arms (when the problem is in the vertebrae of the neck) or down your legs (when the problem disc is in the lower back region). You may also have tingling or numbness in your arms or legs, and general muscle weakness.
In rare cases a herniated or bulging disc can also cause problems with urinating or having bowel movements, often accompanied by numbness in the genital area. This is a medical emergency and you should get help right away.
Treatment for a Bulging Disc
Sometimes surgery is needed, but in many cases a herniated disc will heal with rest. However, it is important to seek medical advice with any back problem. Your doctor can check that there is nothing more serious wrong with you, and prescribe pain relief medication if necessary for your bulging disc.
