AnabolicFitness.com admits to fraud…then claims it’s no big deal

Why is it a big deal to me that AnabolicFitness.com was sued by the FTC? I’ll tell you why…it’s a big deal because last year (2007) while I was working for EliteFitness.com (who is still selling 2 of my books, and features my articles on their main page), I said that they should be dropped as sponsors. They were just too aggressive, and I feel like they made some outrageous claims. Now, they FTC has sued them for making claims that are not supported by the FDA. You know what that means? It means I was right. At the very bottom of this post, you’ll see the letter AnabolicFitness.com received from the FTC. It is titled “Deceptive Advertising Claims are Illegal.” Now, remember, before I told everyone that AnaFit got sued for fraud by the FTC, nobody knew. Anafit certainly didn’t tell anyone, and their members were in the dark about it. Their customers certainly didn’t know…

But naturally, Anafit responded on their site with a series of its-not-a-big-deal types of posts (on their own message board). Subsequently, their members went out proclaiming to the world on other message boards that “it’s not a big deal” and it’s “yesterday’s news.” If it’s not a big deal, and it’s all over and done with, why did I have to tell you about it instead of them? When I got sued, and I thought it was silly and no big deal, I TOLD YOU, didn’t I? If it’s old news, then why was the lawsuit only filed on September 25th of this year (less than a month ago)? The lawsuit may have been initiated years ago, but calling this “old news” when the docket was just filed is very misleading.

Why didn’t Anafit come clean and do the same thing I did?

Well, I suppose to some people, having the FTC tell you that you’re committing fraud isn’t a big deal, and I suppose that basically admitting it, and being forced into removing all of your fraudulent claims from a product isn’t a big deal either. But to me, ADMITTING FRAUD is a big deal…as is being accused and sued for it by the government. But AnabolicFitness.com says that they committed fraud, were found out, and were subsequently sued for it, and we should all just forget about it, because hey, they tell us that it’s not a big deal.

Anafit tells us that it’s just big pharmaceutical interests controlling the FDA and the FTC, and that it’s all a big conspiracy, and yadda-yadda-yadda. But the fact remains, Anafit ADMITTED TO FRAUD, and were FORCED TO COMPLY WITH THE FTC’s DEMANDS IN FULL. So you can believe them (and hey, they wouldn’t lie to you…right?), or you can believe the FTC. Hell…why would Anafit lie to you (other than the fact that they were looking to make 6-figures off the product they were fraudulently advertising)?

Basically, as you will read in the letter below, the FTC said that if Anafit was making deceptive/fraudulent claims, they needed to stop. And what happened? They pulled ALL OF THEIR CLAIMS off their site. But, Anafit tells us, the same thing has happened to other nutritional companies in the past, therefore, it’s alright for Anafit to do it too. Right? Right? Other companies break the law, so it’s cool if we do it too, right? RIGHT?? Other people commit fraud and practice deceptive advertising, so it’s all good when we do it…

Until this point, this has been Anafit’s defense…that and having their members repeat this mantra ad nauseum…adding that Larry and Scott (the owners) are nice guys and have great customer service (I don’t know what that last part has to do with fraud, though)…it just doesn’t fly with me.

Frankly, this has been financially ruinous for Anafit, who was ill-prepared to deal with the consequences of this action plus being dumped from EliteFitness.com (and I know this from an inside source). Economically right now they’re on very shaky ground, and we’ve seen them pull their advertising from various sites over the past few months (and move offices), in an effort to stem the financial crisis they’re in. But hey, it’s not a big deal, right?

Anyway…here’s a copy of the letter the FTC sent to them. Make your own mind up:

TO: Internet Advertisers

FROM: The Federal Trade Commission

RE: Health Claims On Your Website For Diabetes Products

DATE: June 13, 2006

Deceptive Advertising Claims are Illegal

The FTC staff recently reviewed your website and is sending you
this letter as part of an industry compliance and education effort to
remind you of your obligations under the law. Under the FTC Act,
advertising claims for products and services must be truthful and not misleading. Health-related claims, like those made about diabetes on
your website, must be supported by competent and reliable scientific
evidence. It is against the law to make health claims without
scientific support. It also is against the law to exaggerate the
benefits of products or services or to mis-state the level of
scientific support you have for your claims. Please note that consumer testimonials are not proof that your product works. They are claims that your product will provide the same benefit for other users and
therefore, must be supported by competent and reliable scientific
evidence.

If your website makes any express or implied claims about the
benefits of any diabetes-related product or service that is not
substantiated by competent and reliable scientific evidence, or is
otherwise deceptive or fraudulent, you must stop making them
immediately.

FTC.GOV