Why of course! How could I forget … I and all other healthifying professionals need to do is recommend this “latex-free adhesive bandage with … 25mg of bladderwrack kelp extract, garcinia cambogia and menthol,” and hey—people will start shedding pounds like no other because this patch is a “metabolic accelerator that helps burn stored fat.”  But, of course the “weight loss” associated with this patch has nothing to do with the fact that consumers are instructed to eat healthfully and 1/3 less than they normally do and exercise. After all, ladies and gents, if you “want to be a winner” and lose weight, you’ll buy a 30-day supply of 15 patches at the lovely price of $28.49–available at Amazon.com.

By the by, I did the research and sorry folks, but brown kelp seaweed (the bladderwrack), garcinia cambogia— a small Indian fruit from which the “active” ingredient hydroxycitric acid (HCA) is derived—and menthol from the mint plant–DO NOT cause weight loss, especially by adhering a patch to your body.  But—oh, I don’t know—perhaps it’s the exercise, healthy diet, and eating less that the company instructs people to do that causes some weight to go? And, by the way—have you ever heard of the placebo effect? Need I say more?

Another Product …

Now, the second new deal on the up-and-up that struck me as “oh no you didn’t” is  GNC’s be-HOT. Yes ladies, that’s what it’s really called. Didn’t you know all you need to do for that extra oomph, better workout, and calorie burning booster, is simply take these pills? Yup, and you can get a 30-day supply  for a mere $50. Now, you ask–what comes in these lil’ pill packs? According to GNC, here’s the low-down:

• be-DEFINED™–toning & sculpting formula: an amino acid derivative, electrolytes, and antioxidants … “to help as you strive to sculpt a leaner you.”
• be-ENERGIZED™–calorie burning formula: “GNC’s own clinically-proven thermogenic blend to help boost your metabolism” with 4 antioxidants: grape seed extract, green tea extract, glutathione, and alpha-Lipoic acid.
• be-ENHANCED™–diet supporting CLA: “features a blend of essential fatty acids and clinically-studied Tonalin® CLA, to help support metabolism and enhance your diet, with other essential fatty acids to provide a healthy source of energy …”

Now—I am not going to go into each minute detail of why these ingredients won’t cause the weight to magically dissipate–just know they’re scientifically bogus in terms of weight loss.

Heck–if pills and patches worked, don’t you think this would have made Oprah followed by all talk shows, late night talk stand up, news segments, Discovery, the Health Channel—like REALLY HUGE HEADLINES all over? Everyone would be a Skinny Minnie then. But, NO, 60% of people  are overweight or obese and this number is only increasing. Sorry, folks better luck next time.

The truth-telling science nerd in me must tell you that antioxidants in be-HOT may help prevent disease and CLA has been shown to help lower cholesterol—but let’s all remember that whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fiber, basically all plants, exercise, and sleep—have shown to do the same darn thing! And, guess what–they don’t cost you an extra $50 for a 30 day supply.

So Many Diet Products, So Few Healthy Lifestyles

As Gary Foster, director of the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple University in Philadelphia, stated in Woolston’s Do Diet Patches Stick?

Red flags should go up whenever a product promises to speed weight loss by boosting metabolism or reducing appetite. No compound known to science can increase metabolism enough to really budge the scale, he says, and every known appetite suppressant has significant side effects.

Today, there are so many products that claim if you take them, you’ll become leaner, sexier or drop weight. And, to assure this, I went down my local drugstore’s “Diet” aisle. Now, what would I expect to see in a “Diet” aisle? Brown rice, whole wheat pasta, broccoli, zucchini, squash, apples, oranges, beans, low-fat dairy, lean meats, olive oil, canola oil, kale, spinach, salmon, grass-fed meats, grapes, oatmeal, and so forth, but NO. Instead I see: SlimQuick, Dual Action Cleansers, Fat Burn Cleansers, Hydroxycut, SLIM Shots, and Jillian Michal’s Fat Burner and Detox and Cleanse System (oh, my heart sinks!). And, let me just say–all of these products are around $20-40 a pack.

Again, if these things worked—no one would be overweight or at least the percentage of overweight would shrink from the current 60% … instead of continuing to increase. These supplements are simply money makers. According to a New York Times piece, Mintel, a market research firm, projects sales of vitamins  and minerals to grow more than 6% this year — to $11.2 billion, from $10.6 billion in 2008 . That’s a lot of money from pills and potions! I hate to say it, but there is no quick fix to lose weight and actually keep it off. If I could box a healthy lifestyle and sell it, that would be the long term fix.

Bottom Line: Don’t Waste Your Hard-Earned Cash on Pills & Potions—they’re only Puffery!

Use that “extra” money to buy:

• A gym membership
• More workout DVDs
• A set of dumbbells
• More fruit
• More vegetables
• More whole grains
• More lean meat
• More low-fat dairy

And, Don’t Forget

• Sleep more
• Destress more
• Move more

Happy Healthifying!

What are your thoughts on the “diet” aisle???