masvida

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom I’ve seen a big increase in “miracle” weight loss products to fight the battle of the bulge. We are bombarded with ads for quick weight loss in print, online, and on TV. You’ve seen the ads with thin, muscled, and tanned men and women – with teeth as large and bright as Chiclets gum – standing near piles of high-calorie foods. There’s always a caption like “Eat whatever you want and lose weight if you add  ________!” Just fill in the blank with whatever product is being sold. Or maybe the ad is for a fitness contraption that provides a “total body workout” in just 15 minutes a day that promises to “boost your metabolism and weight loss.” By law, there’s always a disclaimer included, usually in tiny letters at the bottom of the ad. “Individual results can vary” or “Results here not typical.” And just when many of us have wised up to these kinds of product promotions and are no longer fooled, a new ad form has emerged that makes it much harder to figure out t...