If you do not know the name of Kevin Trudeau, chances are you may recognize his face from thousands of television infomercials. You won’t be seeing Kevin for a while because he has just been given a 10 year sentence in the federal penitentiary. In an article written for CNN by Leslie Holland (March 18, 2014), she states:
“During Monday’s sentencing hearing he (Trudeau) also got a tongue-lashing from U.S. District Judge Ronald Guzman, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago.
‘Since the age of 25, (Trudeau) has attempted to cheat others for his own personal gain,’ Guzman said. In a sentencing memo, prosecutors called Trudeau an ‘unrepentant, untiring, and uncontrollable huckster who has defrauded the unsuspecting for 30 years.’”
He was warned
Mr. Trudeau has made 3 infomercials in 2006 and 2007 that have been broadcast and re-broadcast thousands of times, however, he had been warned as far back as 2004 to not make them or to make his claims.
According to the New York Daily News (March 17, 2014), his weight loss book in question, “The Weight Loss Cure ‘They’ Don’t Want You to Know About,” (and other natural cure books) have already made him $49 million in sales. The government ordered him to pay back $37 million in consumer losses and he defied the order. The judiciary was incensed at him as it was, because he was in contempt of court going back to legal problems in 2010.
At the very center of the controversy was Mr. Trudeau’s “miracle diet.” When carefully examined, the diet was based on eating 500 calories a day, plus bottles of supplements and other products. In addition to the low caloric diet, he recommended cleanses, walking an hour a day and avoiding certain foods altogether. He promised those suffering from depression, AIDS, diabetes and cancers that his diet would help them.
Trudeau is not a doctor, a licensed practitioner, a scientist or a dietician. He is a huckster who has tricked a lot of people into believing that eating 500 calories a day is good for them. He is a huckster who perpetuates the myth that anyone working at any pharmaceutical company in the world is an evil and awful person.
In truth, the FDA tells us that 2,000 calories per day is sufficient for children and the elderly just to maintain weight. Adults need as much as 2,600 calories per day to maintain weight. Trudeau’s diet may have worked for a week or two because those on the diet were starving themselves. A person with cancer or diabetes, who, God forbid, was using Trudeau’s diet rather than seeking medical assistance was made sicker and not better. Trudeau’s crimes were not victimless.
We’ve been warned too
True story. Many years ago I met the relative of a man who was a TV pitchman. The relative was asked to sit in the audience of an infomercial – along with dozens of other relatives, friends, employees and acquaintances. These folks were told to applaud wildly, cheer, laugh, “Ooh and aah!,” and in general to hang on every word the pitchman spoke. Taken out of context, the scene is funny bordering on the absurd. Indeed, so is a man promoting a miracle diet whose “main ingredient” is starvation.
The problem is that people believe pitchmen over basic, common sense. Whether you are considering a miracle diet or an over-priced, celebrity endorsed skin cream, remember that you are watching programming that has been paid for and that many of the health claims have never been scientifically proven. Whether the pitch person is wearing a white lab coat or a three piece suit, their objective is to separate you from your money.
Is it unethical behavior? Yes, of course it is. Perhaps Kevin Trudeau can consider the effects of his behavior in the months and years to follow.