THE ACAI BERRY PHENOMENON IS ALL A BUNCH OF HYPE

There are hundreds of websites and Youtube videos endorsing the use of Acai berry supplements to lose dramatic amounts of weight. Are all/most of these endorsements scams mooching off of false propaganda?

The Acai berry phenomenon is all a bunch of hype

Yes, because... Oprah Winfrey and Dr.Oz are suing companies that plug themselves by name-dropping

 

Acai berries are berries which contain a significantly greater concentration of vitamin C than other foods(fruits,veggies and organ meats.)

Oprah Winfrey and Dr,Oz made a comment about this on television and ever since then many companies that sell weight loss supplements containing Acai berries had been dropping their names to sell their products.

Since a large amount of vitamin C does not automate healthy weight loss (hyper-vitaminosis[1] can result from having too much of a vitamin) and the two have not tried most of these products, a lawsuit is in the lurk.[2]

  1. ^ http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/hypervitaminosis
  2. ^ http://www.ukmedix.com/weight-loss/oprah_and_oz_to_sue_over_acai_berries4897.cfm

 

But there are countless websites claiming otherwise.

Yes and these medicines do generally work even if laxatives and the placebo effect are doing the trick.

 

Vote on this point: Oprah Winfrey and Dr.Oz are suing companies that plug themselves by name-dropping

Absolutely Yes
Strongly Yes
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Partially Yes
Neutral
Partially No
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Strongly No
Absolutely No

The Acai berry phenomenon is all a bunch of hype

Yes, because... charge money for free trials,false propaganda/testimonials and bogus results

 

[1]

Most of the companies selling acai berries continue to bilk thousands of consumers, charging 80-90 U.S.Ds a month in the ruse of free trials and using false celebrity endorsements that they are being sued for, as we speak.The Center for Science in the Public Interest(CSPI) has addressed this issue by probing public awareness about this mass scam.

"There's no evidence whatsoever to suggest that acai pills will help shed pounds, flatten tummies, cleanse colon, enhance sexual desire, or perform any of the other commonly advertised functions," according to CSPI's press release.

"Virtually every berry -- blueberry, strawberry, goji, acai -- are anti-inflammatory and high in antioxidants," Bowden(nutrition expert) said. "This particular one is exotic. It's found in Brazil. It's been marketed to have more of a magic ingredient. It's been over-hyped and marketed to death. There are claims to curing cancer, curing baldness that is all over the place."

Like most berries, acai has good nutritional qualities, but "there is not a drop of research" that supports marketing claims that it prevents weight gain and facial wrinkles, Bowden said.

Acai juices sell for as much as $40 per bottle.

"The expensive acai berry is triumph of marketing over science, that's the bottom line," Bowden said. "It's not useless, but it's not anything that people are claiming it is."

Companies including FWM Laboratories of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Hollywood, Florida, Advanced Wellness Research of Miami Beach, Florida, and other acai companies are accused of using fake diet blogs to steer consumers to sites plugging the free trials.

After a doctor listed acai as a healthy food on the Oprah Winfrey show last year, and a guest on Rachael Ray's cooking show mentioned the fruit, ads popped up directing consumers to sites selling acai weight loss products as if endorsed by the celebrities. Winfrey and Ray have publicly disassociated themselves from those sites.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal is investigating numerous complaints and said a lawsuit against FWM Laboratories is very likely.

Health Library MayoClinic.com: Color your diet-- fresh fruit 10 ways According to the Better Business Bureau, FWM Laboratories received an F rating, the BBB's worst. Other acai companies with the BBB''s F rating include Advanced Wellness Research, AcaiBurn, FX Supplements and SFL Nutrition.

"There are no magical berries from the Brazilian rain forest that cure obesity, only painfully real credit card charges and empty weight loss promises," Blumenthal said. "Aggressive acai berry pitches on the Internet entice countless consumers into free trials promising weight loss, energy and detoxification. These claims are based on folklore, traditional remedies and outright fabrications unproved by real scientific evidence."

  1. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/23/acai.berries.scam/index.html

 

All the testimonials cannot be fake. Why are the ads still up? It does have benefits. Acai berries are not the only ingredient of such supplements.

 

Vote on this point: charge money for free trials,false propaganda/testimonials and bogus results

Absolutely Yes
Strongly Yes
Mostly Yes
Partially Yes
Neutral
Partially No
Mostly No
Strongly No
Absolutely No

The Acai berry phenomenon is all a bunch of hype

Vote on this debate: The Acai berry phenomenon is all a bunch of hype

Absolutely Yes
Strongly Yes
Mostly Yes
Partially Yes
Neutral
Partially No
Mostly No
Strongly No
Absolutely No