Keep Your Eyes Open for Weight Loss Ads
"In only six days I lost seven pounds of weight."
"Two full inches in the first three days!"
These are the kinds of statements (use) in magazine, newspaper, radio and television ads, (promise) new shapes and new looks to those who buy the medicine or the device. The promoters of products say they shape the legs, slim the face and smooth wrinkles. Often such products are nothing more than money-making things for their promoters. The results they produce are questionable, and some are dangerous to health.
To understand how these products can be legally promoted to the public, is necessary to understand something of the laws covering their regulation. If the product is a drug, FDA (Food and Drug Administration) can require proof that it is safe and effective before it (put) on the market. But if the product is a device, FDA has no authority (require) premarketing proof of safety or effectiveness. a product already on the market is a danger to health, FDA can request the producer or distributor to remove it from the market voluntarily, or it can take legal action, including seizure (查封) of the product. One notable case a few years ago (involve) an electrical device called the Relaxacisor, had been sold for reducing the waistline. The Relaxacisor produced electrical shocks to the body through contact pads. FDA took legal action against the distributor to stop the sale of the device on the grounds it was dangerous to health and life.
