{"id":98,"date":"2016-07-14T17:43:35","date_gmt":"2016-07-14T17:43:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-monroecc-hed110\/?post_type=chapter&p=98"},"modified":"2016-12-10T16:50:29","modified_gmt":"2016-12-10T16:50:29","slug":"health-fraud","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/atd-monroecc-healthed\/chapter\/health-fraud\/","title":{"raw":"Health Fraud","rendered":"Health Fraud"},"content":{"raw":"

6 Tip-offs to Rip-offs: Don't Fall for Health Fraud Scams<\/h2>\r\nBogus product! Danger! Health fraud alert!<\/em>\r\n\r\nYou\u2019ll never see these warnings on health products, but that\u2019s what you ought to be thinking when you see claims like \u201cmiracle cure,\u201d \u201crevolutionary scientific breakthrough,\u201d or \u201calternative to drugs or surgery.\u201d\r\n\r\nHealth fraud scams have been around for hundreds of years. The snake oil salesmen of old have morphed into the deceptive, high-tech marketers of today. They prey on people\u2019s desires for easy solutions to difficult health problems\u2014from losing weight to curing serious diseases like cancer.\r\n\r\nAccording 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 has not been scientifically proven safe and effective for that purpose.\r\n\r\nScammers promote their products through newspapers, magazines, TV infomercials and cyberspace. You can find health fraud scams in retail stores and on countless websites, in popup ads and spam, and on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/KsPlwKbGxE8\r\n

Not Worth the Risk<\/h3>\r\nHealth fraud scams can do more than waste your money. They can cause serious injury or even death, says Gary Coody, R.Ph., FDA\u2019s national health fraud coordinator. \u201cUsing unproven treatments can delay getting a potentially life-saving diagnosis and medication that actually works. Also, fraudulent products sometimes contain hidden drug ingredients that can be harmful when unknowingly taken by consumers.\u201d\r\n\r\nFraudulent products often make claims related to:\r\n
    \r\n \t
  • weight loss<\/li>\r\n \t
  • sexual performance<\/li>\r\n \t
  • memory loss<\/li>\r\n \t
  • serious diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and Alzheimer\u2019s.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n

    A Pervasive Problem<\/h3>\r\nFraudulent products not only won\u2019t work\u2014they could cause serious injury. In the past few years, FDA laboratories have found more than 100 weight-loss products, illegally marketed as dietary supplements, that contained sibutramine, the active ingredient in the prescription weight-loss drug Meridia. In 2010, Meridia was withdrawn from the U.S. market after studies showed that it was associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke.\r\n\r\nFraudulent products marketed as drugs or dietary supplements are not the only health scams on the market. FDA found a fraudulent and expensive light therapy device with cure-all claims to treat fungal meningitis, Alzheimer\u2019s, skin cancer, concussions and many other unrelated diseases. Generally, making health claims about a medical device without FDA clearance or approval of the device is illegal.\r\n\r\n\u201cHealth fraud is a pervasive problem,\u201d says Coody, \u201cespecially when scammers sell online. It\u2019s difficult to track down the responsible parties. When we do find them and tell them their products are illegal, some will shut down their website. Unfortunately, however, these same products may reappear later on a different website, and sometimes may reappear with a different name.\u201d\r\n

    Tip-Offs<\/h3>\r\nFDA offers some tip-offs to help you identify rip-offs.\r\n
      \r\n \t
    • One product does it all. <\/strong>Be suspicious of products that claim to cure a wide range of diseases. A New York firm claimed its products marketed as dietary supplements could treat or cure senile dementia, brain atrophy, atherosclerosis, kidney dysfunction, gangrene, depression, osteoarthritis, dysuria, and lung, cervical and prostate cancer. In October 2012, at FDA\u2019s request, U.S. marshals seized these products.<\/li>\r\n \t
    • Personal testimonials.<\/strong> Success stories, such as, \u201cIt cured my diabetes\u201d or \u201cMy tumors are gone,\u201d are easy to make up and are not a substitute for scientific evidence.<\/li>\r\n \t
    • Quick fixes. <\/strong>Few diseases or conditions can be treated quickly, even with legitimate products. Beware of language such as, \u201cLose 30 pounds in 30 days\u201d or \u201celiminates skin cancer in days.\u201d<\/li>\r\n \t
    • \u201cAll natural.\u201d<\/strong> Some plants found in nature (such as poisonous mushrooms) can kill when consumed. Moreover, FDA has found numerous products promoted as \u201call natural\u201d but that contain hidden and dangerously high doses of prescription drug ingredients or even untested active artificial ingredients.<\/li>\r\n \t
    • \u201cMiracle cure.\u201d<\/strong> Alarms should go off when you see this claim or others like it such as, \u201cnew discovery,\u201d \u201cscientific breakthrough\u201d or \u201csecret ingredient.\u201d If a real cure for a serious disease were discovered, it would be widely reported through the media and prescribed by health professionals\u2014not buried in print ads, TV infomercials or on Internet sites.<\/li>\r\n \t
    • Conspiracy theories. <\/strong>Claims like \u201cThe pharmaceutical industry and the government are working together to hide information about a miracle cure\u201d are always untrue and unfounded. These statements are used to distract consumers from the obvious, common-sense questions about the so-called miracle cure.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nEven with these tips, fraudulent health products are not always easy to spot. If you're tempted to buy an unproven product or one with questionable claims, check with your doctor or other health care professional first.","rendered":"

      6 Tip-offs to Rip-offs: Don’t Fall for Health Fraud Scams<\/h2>\n

      Bogus product! Danger! Health fraud alert!<\/em><\/p>\n

      You\u2019ll never see these warnings on health products, but that\u2019s what you ought to be thinking when you see claims like \u201cmiracle cure,\u201d \u201crevolutionary scientific breakthrough,\u201d or \u201calternative to drugs or surgery.\u201d<\/p>\n

      Health fraud scams have been around for hundreds of years. The snake oil salesmen of old have morphed into the deceptive, high-tech marketers of today. They prey on people\u2019s desires for easy solutions to difficult health problems\u2014from losing weight to curing serious diseases like cancer.<\/p>\n

      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 has not been scientifically proven safe and effective for that purpose.<\/p>\n

      Scammers promote their products through newspapers, magazines, TV infomercials and cyberspace. You can find health fraud scams in retail stores and on countless websites, in popup ads and spam, and on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.<\/p>\n