OnlyCritiques.com Review:

Mark Hughes founded Herbalife International, in 1980, to market dietary supplements, herbs, weight-management products, and personal care products. He was inspired by his mother’s unsuccessful fight against increasing weight to develop products to aid weight loss in a healthy way. Herbalife's has retail sales of $247 million in the and $693 million worldwide.

Mark Hughes collaborated with Richard Marconi, PhD to develop products that would build health while allowing an individual to take weight off sensibly and safely. This research resulted in the launch of, Herbalife Slim and Trim. Richard Marconi, PhD had previously worked with a multilevel company marketing weight loss products. Herbalife's initial marketing was done through cable television programs that were filled with health and finance related testimonials.

However, the company has been under investigation for the ingredients of its products since 1982.The FDA sent them a notice for making deceptive claims about product effectiveness. The FDA claimed that certain products were misbranded because of labeling claims that they were effective for treating many diseases, dissolving and removing tumors, rejuvenating, increasing circulation, and producing mental alertness. The agency had also received several complaints regarding side effects of using Herbalife products, which stopped when the products were no longer consumed. Many suits were filed by dissatisfied customers and settled out of court by the company.

In 1985, Senator William V. Roth, Jr. (R-DE) held a hearing on weight loss programs. It was found that Herbalife had no research whatsoever to support its products. None of its products was scientifically tested before being sold to individuals commercially. This hearing shockingly disclosed that in a study conducted by the company more than 40% of the individuals had complaints of constipation, headache, nausea, diarrhea, light-headedness, palpitations, and other symptoms that might be attributable to Herbalife products. Occurrence of side effects was because several ingredients in Herbalife products were potent laxatives and contained guarana, which is high in caffeine.

The company also got into trouble in 1985 over its Official Career Handbook that made wrong claims about the suitability of Herbalife products in effectively treating more than seventy diseases and conditions. The California Attorney General found the company guilty of violating California's consumer protection laws. The suit also accused Herbalife of operating an illegal pyramid scheme. The case was settled in 1986 when Hughes agreed to pay $850,000 and to modify its claims and marketing practices.

Herbalife started on a good mission. However, over the years it has been guilty of making false claims about the efficacy of its products. The company’s selling methods are also discriminatory and only a few manage to earn the promised millions unlike the claims made by the company. The company should therefore use safe ingredients in its products and not mislead consumers since it directly affects their lives and health.

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