Celebrity endorsements are what make products fly off the shelves. Whether it is books, clothes, shoes, food or pretty much anything seen on the Oprah Winfrey show, it must be worth trying. Consumers seem fascinated by what Oprah loves. If it has Oprah’s seal of approval, then the product’s popularity skyrockets overnight.
Last year, Oprah Winfrey had a show with Dr. Mehmet Oz about anti-aging. As part of his anti-aging list, Dr. Oz introduced the viewers to a new, powerful fruit named acai. He mentioned that the acai berries had twice as many antioxidants as a blueberry. This along with other helpful tips on his list would help to deter the aging process. On a later show, Dr. Perricone also touted the benefits of the acai berry and named it his number one superfood on his health list. Potential benefits of the acai berry include preventing heart disease, lowering cholesterol, boosting energy, and aiding in weight loss. Oprah Winfrey seemed excited to hear about the possible benefits in the acai fruit, but never did she or Dr. Oz ever endorse any products made with the acai berry.
Misleading supplement manufacturers were quick to jump on the Oprah bandwagon. Many began claiming the talk show queen was endorsing their acai supplements for weight loss throughout the internet. The thousands of online advertisements for the supplements spread like wildfire across the world wide web. Scammers used the names and faces of Oprah and Dr. Oz to take advantage of those looking for a quick weight loss fix. These companies are making appalling claims about acai being some miracle weight loss pill. Using Oprah Winfrey’s name would undoubtedly influence the viewers to purchase anything they sell.
Now, Oprah’s fighting back. Along with her company, Harpo, Inc., Dr. Oz, producers of The Oprah Winfrey Show, and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Oprah is suing the acai fruit companies over false claims. They are now warning consumers about the fabricated endorsements for acai berry supplements. A law suit has been filed against 40 companies who marketed the supplements over their deceptive practices.
The acai berry itself is a powerful antioxidant that you can benefit from but beware. Consumers must be vigilant of the thousands of scammers on the internet waiting to take advantage of you. Just because a celebrity face or name is attached to a product, it doesn’t mean that they are actually endorsing it. Do your homework and educate yourself about a product before making any purchase.
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