The weight loss market is a big market. Businesses come in from all angles to try to get piece of it. Unfortunately, some angles that businesses take to make money are neither healthy nor realistic. In more cases than you may think, they are complete scams.
Remember that losing weight shouldn’t only be about being a certain pants size, or appearing slim. Achieving a healthy weight is about just that: health.
How can you find out if a weight loss product or service is a complete scam? Here are some tips that will help keep you from losing money, and save you from unnecessary frustration.
It promises super fast results
10 pounds in a week? An inch a day? If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. A healthy and sustainable rate of weight loss is between 1 and 2 pounds a week. If it’s more than that, you are probably losing a lot of water weight, and causing shock to your body. As soon as it gets the chance, it will gain the weight right back.
Don’t trust overnight solutions – they are probably scams.
They advertise with fake reviews
Most websites for weight-loss products have reviews right on the front page that talk about how the pill or service changed their life. If the reviews are short sentences, attributed to someone with only a first name, it’s likely the reviews are made up.
They offer “free trials”
You should be wary of free trials offered by these sites. They often ask you to put in your credit card information before asking for the free trial, and will charge you for it anyway. The worst scam sites will charge you over and over again for a product you won’t ever receive.
If you get in touch with the site’s customer service, and if you are lucky enough to get a response, they will tell you the product is on its way, and do anything they can to avoid from cancelling the subscription. Some scam victims say they’ve had to cancel credit cards to avoid being charged.
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Don’t be a weight loss scam victim – keep your eyes and ears open and learn to be weary before trying out something new. If you are convinced a product or service sounds legitimate, ask your physician or nutritionist before moving forward.
