Thread: Bob's not smilin' no more....

I have a friend who brought those pills years ago, he gave them away, told me the mega-man did a better job.

Warshak required customers to provide notarized documents from a doctor proving that they had small genitals in order to get a refund,

HA! That would be embarassing.

I wonder what's really in those pills.

Originally Posted by min0 lee

I have a friend who brought those pills years ago, he gave them away, told me the mega-man did a better job.

You mean it was the better placebo?

Originally Posted by WillBrink

You mean it was the better placebo?

I guess.

Originally Posted by min0 lee

I guess.

BTW, The various powers that be are going after several high profile companies for their BS claims. Another one which irritated me was Airborn. It was supposed to prevent colds. The big claim to fame for this product? Says right on the box "Created by a school teacher!" Impressive....not

I use supplements, quite a few in fact,* and often recommend them depending on the population or person, but it's this type of crap that makes the industry look like the snake oil pit it often is.

They just settled a class action suit for 23 mil:

Airborne settles lawsuit for $23.3 million
The herbal supplement firm will settle class action lawsuit that alleges false advertising; money will be refunded to consumers, non-profit advocacy group says.

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Airborne - the herbal supplement company that once claimed to help fight off colds - will pay $23.3 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought against the company for false advertising, according to one of the groups that joined the suit.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, a non-profit advocacy group, said the company will refund money to consumers who bought Airborne's product. It will pay for advertisements in major publications instructing consumers on how to get their money refunded.

"There's no credible evidence that what's in Airborne can prevent colds or protect you from a germy environment," said CSPI Senior nutritionist David Schardt. "Airborne is basically on overpriced, run-of-the-mill vitamin pill that's been cleverly, but deceptively, marketed."

http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/04/news/companies/airborne...stversion=2008030413

* = People can see the various supplements I use in this vid:

It's about time they started coming down on these crooks.

I might add my Doc (Gastroenterology) and he told me to stop wasting money on supps, told me they were a waste of money......

Originally Posted by min0 lee

It's about time they started coming down on these crooks.

I might add my Doc (Gastroenterology) and he told me to stop wasting money on supps, told me they were a waste of money......

They're not all a waste of money. Some are very much worth using. The trick is to know the difference.

I never liked Airborn anyways but I don't know how they can prove it does nothing for preventing or helping a cold. I think the average person does not take in enough vitamins that might help fight off a cold, or lessen the effects of a cold. So I would venture to say people do benefit. My boss swears that stuff works for her. When I get sick I load up on C and start taking zinc until my cold goes away. For me that works wonders. So if I wanted to try and make a living endorsing a product to help with the common cold by making a C/Zinc pill am I going to get sued if someone says my claim is false?

As for the penis pill they are preying on people that have personal issues with their penis size....that is not hard to find. The whole keep mailing you the product until you stop it is a little shady....the refund thing is a total scam because nobody is going to go through all that to get their money back. If you already hate your small penis you are not going to go have your doctor confirm on paper you have a tiny PP.

Originally Posted by TrojanMan60563

I never liked Airborn anyways but I don't know how they can prove it does nothing for preventing or helping a cold.

Easy, you conduct a study. Two, one does not prove a negative. If you claim product X does Y, it's up to you to show it does that when making claims. Considering all the $$$, they never funded one single study. Why? 'Cause they don't care if it works or not, they care about $$$$.

I'm a fan of vite C and zinc, and vites in general, but you get a much higher dose of all of them in a simple multi vite than you do with Airborn.

Originally Posted by TrojanMan60563

I think the average person does not take in enough vitamins that might help fight off a cold, or lessen the effects of a cold.

Agreed. Take a good multi vite then.

Originally Posted by WillBrink

They're not all a waste of money. Some are very much worth using. The trick is to know the difference.

My doc told me the same thing two days ago, but I took it with a grain of salt. I could tell that when I said my diet was geared around bodybuilding, she automatically assumed that meant tons of protein shakes and supplements

Originally Posted by danzik17

My doc told me the same thing two days ago, but I took it with a grain of salt. I could tell that when I said my diet was geared around bodybuilding, she automatically assumed that meant tons of protein shakes and supplements

First thing to know: most MDs know nothing about supps, and very little about nutrition. They are not generally a good resource for either, unless they have really spent additional time researching the topic. It's not a topic taught in any depth in med school, with most med schools having zero courses on the topic. Most MDs would be far better of simply saying "I don't know" when it comes to supps, and to a lesser degree nutrition, but their ego and teaching makes that difficult.

Originally Posted by WillBrink

First thing to know: most MDs know nothing about supps, and very little about nutrition. They are not generally a good resource for either, unless they have really spent additional time researching the topic. It's not a topic taught in any depth in med school, with most med schools having zero courses on the topic. Most MDs would be far better of simply saying "I don't know" when it comes to supps, and to a lesser degree nutrition, but their ego and teaching makes that difficult.

Oh I know. She was preaching "The Omnivore's Dilemma" as the be all end all book on how to eat, so I'm going to read through it and tear it apart at my next appointment. As far as I have read up to, it's all focused on how the food is grown or raised. Though a legitimate concern, I haven't heard the words calorie, protein, carb, or fat raised in any kind of a nutritional context at all yet. That and she is basing her diet on the research and opinions done by an investigative journalist, not a nutritionist or actual scientific research.

Originally Posted by WillBrink

First thing to know: most MDs know nothing about supps, and very little about nutrition. They are not generally a good resource for either, unless they have really spent additional time researching the topic. It's not a topic taught in any depth in med school, with most med schools having zero courses on the topic. Most MDs would be far better of simply saying "I don't know" when it comes to supps, and to a lesser degree nutrition, but their ego and teaching makes that difficult.

They should know, most of what ills is can be remedied with good nutrition instead of pumping us with medication that's loaded with side effects and expensive.