Excerpts from Consumer Health Digest #07-39
October 9, 2007
“FTC expands attack on Trudeau book infomercial.
The FTC has charged the marketers of Kevin Trudeau's book, The Weight
Loss
Cure 'They' Don't Want You to Know About, with misrepresenting
the book's contents in their infomercial. [FTC charges marketers of
"Weight-Loss
Cure" book with misrepresenting book's contents. FTC
news release, Oct 5, 2007]
FTC Charges Marketers of “Weight-Loss Cure” Book with Misrepresenting Book’s Contents The ad claims that the weight-loss plan outlined in the book is easy to do, can be done at home, and ultimately allows readers to eat whatever they want. However, the plan is complex and grueling and requires severe
dieting, daily injections of a prescription drug that consumers cannot easily obtain, and lifelong dietary restrictions. The FTC has already filed similar charges against Trudeau. [FTC: Marketer Kevin Trudeau violated prior court order: Charges him with misrepresenting contents of book. FTC news release, Sept 14, 2007]
FTC: Marketer Kevin Trudeau Violated Prior Court Order The new complaint targets Direct Marketing Concepts, Inc., ITV Direct, Inc., and the two individuals who jointly control the two companies, Donald Barrett and Robert Maihos. In 2004, the Commission sued the same four defendants for making deceptive advertising claims for two dietary supplements and billing consumers' credit cards without
authorization. Trudeau and ITV Direct are accusing the FTC of trying
to suppress their free speech. However, although the First Amendment
protects the contents of books, ads for books are commercial speech
that is not legally permitted to misrepresent what the book says.
NHS homeopathic coverage shrinking.
Spurred in part by letters from prominent scientists, the United
Kingdom's National Health Service is reducing coverage of homeopathic
treatment. During the past two years, more than half of the NHS
regional administrative agencies have eliminated or sharply reduced
coverage. Loss of government funding is a serious blow to the UK's
four homeopathic hospitals, at least one of which appears likely to
close next year. [Barrett S. Another UK health service agency ends
homeopathy funding. Homeowatch, Oct 12, 2007]
http://www.homeowatch.org/policy/wkpct.html” 
