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Date Posted: 11:46:28 06/15/04 Tue
Author: J.R.Smith, c.f.t., s.p.n., s.s.c.
Subject: Dr. Phil.... Buyer beware

Dr. Phil....
Say It Ain't So!


After years of basking in the national spotlight, Dr. Philip McGraw's good guy image took a hit. McGraw and the company that sells Dr. Phil -branded supplements, Dallas-based CSA Nutraceuticals, are being sued.



A lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court March 26 charges they used "false and misleading advertising, deceptive practices, and false and fraudulent claims" to sell Shape Up...



McGraw's Shape Up! products include nutrition bars; weight-management supplements; so-called "intensifier" pills to increase the effectiveness of other pills; and meal-replacement shakes - since they went on sale last year.



The lawsuit - believed to be the first filed against Shape Up! - comes after the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest raised serious questions about the products' effectiveness.



The Shape Up! pills - which cost consumers $60 a month if they take the recommended 12 a day - are advertised as having different formulas effective for apple-shaped or pear-shaped body types.

The Shape Up! Web site says that "apple body types store excess fat in their stomach region and need more help with metabolizing carbohydrates."



"Pear body types store excess fat around their hips and thighs - areas more resistant to weight-loss efforts."



But an investigation by the Center for Science in the Public Interest found the pills for each body type are practically identical.



The lawsuit, which also named Shape Up! manufacturer CSA Nutraceuticals as a defendant, said the manufacturers falsely claim that some of the products contain "scientifically researched levels of ingredients that can help you change your behavior to take control of your weight."



"There is no credible scientific evidence that these products or their ingredients individually or in combination have any effect on behavior," the suit says.



The Center for Science in the Public Interest said Dr Phil's Shape Up! Shakes are made from "just a run-of-the-mill powder made from milk, fiber and vitamins."



And his bars, made from sugars, oil, soy protein, fiber and still more vitamins, seem formulated without the help of Dr. Phil's book, "The Ultimate Weight Solution," which declares sugars and fats "off-limits if you want to successfully control your weight," the center said.



According to his attorney, McGraw has no financial interest in the products as "every penny of the licensing fee goes to his charitable foundation to fight childhood obesity . . . and do other good deeds."

Interestingly, however, CSA Nutraceuticals is housed in the same offices as Courtroom Sciences Inc., McGraw's own litigation-consulting firm.



It was as a trial consultant that McGraw met Oprah Winfrey, when she hired him to help her fight a lawsuit by Texas cattlemen. This alliance ultimately led to McGraw's weekly appearances on her show and, eventually, to his own daytime series.

CSA's president is Gary Dobbs, McGraw's partner at Courtroom Sciences, and its chief operating officer is Brent Dobbs, Gary Dobbs' son.

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