I completely understand that most people (including myself) need a kickstart or motivation tool to return to a healthy lifestyle – be that Davina McCall’s latest workout DVD or an overpriced smoothie blender. I have no problem with this, it’s our prerogative, obviously. Heck, it’s taken several expensive accoutrements (trainers, gym kit, new headphones) to motivate myself to get back into the gym.
But what I DO have a problem with is the misleading marketing and bogus pseudo-science that sometimes accompanies many new diet and health products out there, not only swindling people but also toying with their health and wellbeing.
The Forever F.I.T. and Clean 9 diets by Forever Living are good examples of these bogus products. They claim that staying committed to their three part ‘advanced nutritional and cleansing weight-loss program’ will show you how to lose on average between 7 and 10lbs permanently and never put it back on. Bold claims. And obviously, this advanced weight loss miracle doesn’t come cheap. The first stage, the Clean 9, is a nine day ‘detox’ diet that claims it will purge your body of toxins and make you feel lighter and more energised – this nine day pack alone is around £100. The plan is to then progress onto stages two and three, F.I.T.1 and F.I.T.2, each lasting thirty days and definitely help your wallet lose weight by a whopping £220 per stage.
The Clean 9 pack (as of December 2015) consists of the following supplements:
15 Forever Lite Ultra Shakes – These are essentially artificial soya protein powders to be mixed with milk, taken twice a day as meal replacements. I’ve written much on this topic previously here. Soya protein is the worst type of protein; whey protein or natural food protein is always the better option (unless you have allergies). But soya is the cheaper protein for companies to source or manufacture. For a time, there were a number of health claims about soya protein. Some of these claims stated that soya protein consumption helped lower bad cholesterol, prevented heart disease and even fought off some cancers. However, recent studies have scientifically proven that many of these health claims are not only false but that there are very serious concerns with high soya protein consumption. (15 high soya protein shakes – approx £20, Boots/GNC/Holland & Barrett)
http://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/soys-negative-effects
54 Forever Garcinia Plus Tablets – Garcinia Cambogia is the scientific name for a South-East Asian tropical fruit. In 1998, a randomised, controlled scientific trial looked at the effects of hydroxycitric acid, the purported active component in Garcinia Cambogia, as a potential anti-obesity agent. The conclusion from this trial was that Garcinia Cambogia failed to produce significant weight loss and fat mass loss. Scientific evidence to date is still lacking and clinical trials do not support claims that Garcinia Cambogia is an effective weight-loss aid. What’s more, a 2005 scientific study in Food and Chemical Toxicology found that high doses of Garcinia Cambogia extract caused testicular atrophy and toxicity in animals. Its also interesting to note that most other Forever Living Products are certified ‘suitable for vegetarians’ and also ‘halal’ for Muslims, yet, because these tablets contain gelatin, are not suitable for vegetarians but still certified ‘halal’. So Forever Living are specifically using halal animal gelatin?! Potentially false accreditations aside, this supplement is ineffective and has been exposed across the Internet. (60 tablets – £15, online health stores)
9 sachets of Forever Fibre – 5g of soluble fibre in each sachet to mix with a beverage. Dietary fibre is undeniably crucial for us, but each sachet approximately gives you the same amount of fibre as an apple. Or a bowl of wholewheat cereal. Or a piece of multi-grain bread. Or a bran muffin. Or ½ a cup of lentils. Plus, even today, it’s still unconfirmed whether the fibre in supplements like this gives us the same health benefits as naturally occurring food sources. Hence most reputable companies aim fibre supplements at preventing constipation rather than claiming it can aid weight loss. (10 sachets – approx £3.00, Boots)
18 Forever Therm Tablets – Allegedly these tablets are a “carefully created formula containing a special combination of vitamins, including B6 and B12, which contribute to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue”. Vitamins are always needed, ideally from natural sources but there’s nothing wrong with a multivitamin supplement. But when you have a concentrated mixture of vitamins, especially when taken with protein shakes with high soya and sugar content, you are just simply peeing them down the toilet. Your body can only handle so many vitamins, and can only handle them in certain ratios – anything extra is just passed through your system and down the toilet. (9 day supply of high grade multivitamins – approx £3, Boots/Holland & Barrett)
2 litres of Forever Aloe Vera Gel Drink – I’ve written much about this product previously here and here. (2 litres – approx £20, Holland & Barrett/Boots)
If you’ve been sold an earlier edition of the Clean 9 pack, you may also find:
Forever Bee Pollen Tablets – First off, bees don’t make pollen. Plants make pollen. Forever Living’s ‘Bee pollen’ is actually flower pollen collected off the legs of bees as they return to their hive – mixed with a bit of bee saliva and who knows what else has happened to stick to them. There is no way to know what kind of pollen is used in this supplement. Finding bee pollen research that had been conducted on humans proved to be an extremely difficult task – The few studies (and I mean few) actually were case reports of bad reactions and most are now over twenty years old. The scientific interest died off in the 1980s when they realised it wasn’t well digested by the human digestive system. Again, to date there is no scientific evidence to show that it is has any health benefits. Recently, there have been reported cases of anaphylactic reactions as a result of consuming bee pollen supplements and anyone with pollen or bee allergies should definitely stay well away. The Food and Drug Administration in America have added bee pollen supplements to their list of ‘tainted supplements’ and subsequently the Bee Pollen tablets have been removed from the newer Clean 9 packs.
So ignoring all these debatable supplements, the instructions basically tell you to eat an incredibly calorie-restricted diet and do some exercise for the duration of the course. BREAKING NEWS: if you do this, with or without £500 worth of questionable supplements and shakes, you’ll lose weight. The shakes and aloe gel drinks are basically giving you something to fill your stomach with to stave off cravings (though whether this actually works is largely down to your own willpower), and a few vitamins and fibre supplements so you don’t succumb to full-on malnutrition. Oh, and aloe has some mild laxative effects, so expect to lose a bit of weight down the toilet as well.
Bottom line is that this is a crash diet with some useless and potentially dangerous overpriced supplements; weight lost in this manner will almost certainly pile back on just as fast and it’s not good for your health. By all means, if you’ve got hundreds of pounds to throw away and need to suddenly lose weight before an impending wedding or beach holiday, then give it a go. For those of us that are a bit more careful about spending over £500, simply picking your preferred choice of low-calorie meals and taking a few multivitamins should yield better results and save you a lot of money.
Like with most weight loss products with big claims (and most Forever Living products), the true scientific evidence just isn’t there to back it up. The unregulated Forever Living distributors are back out again promoting these new packs, claiming all sorts of miracles and trying to sign people up. I guarantee you that almost every single review, recommendation and social media post you will see is from a Forever Living distributor or affiliate.
So…..Are you ready to take control of your health? Are you ready to feel better and look better AND also SAVE OVER £500?!
SHARED TRUTH 