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A new weight-loss product is hitting the market. It’s called NV™, and its website suggests it will help you to a slimmer body, provide you with thick and shiny hair, and make your nails strong and your skin glow. The miracle supplement has a tagline: “Be desired.” The spokesperson, NV™ is proud to proclaim, is none other than Carmen Electra, whose own struggles with weight gain have come in deciding which size of implant would be most disproportionate to her figure.

The product reminds me of so many others that take the focus off of lifestyle-based diet and physical activity and place it elsewhere, namely on a quick fix-style pill. As with any weight-loss plan or product, the quickness with which the ‘fix’ occurs, if it occurs at all, is debatable. Even more of a concern is whether or not the ‘fix’ is lasting. In most cases, it’s not. Consumers should approach such products with caution and keep in mind some simple facts about weight-loss plans and products. Primarily, if the product sounds too good to be true, it likely is. This FTC-produced site includes three other facts that consumers might also consider regarding weight loss claims. I urge you to read these facts and compare them with information on NV’s™ homepage.

The safety and efficacy of any drug or supplement can only be verified with rigorous science. With drugs, the science must come first; with supplements, not so. Interesting that, as of the writing of this piece, NV’s™ website is fully up and running, all except for the link to its scientific advisory committee.

Comments

On the NV website, one of the ingredients listed is 'theobromine', which they claim has a 'thermogenic' effect...didn't ephedra have that too? That all by itself indicates that the product may have the potential to be dangerous.

Posted by: bluebela | August 15, 2006 at 11:00 AM

"one of the ingredients listed is 'theobromine'"

Google "theobromine cocoa mass".

Posted by: Noah | August 15, 2006 at 12:17 PM

This is a perfect example of the leaps of faith often taken by supplement companies. Research, in fact, has been done on theobromine. However, the research available on this particular compound is in rats (with exactly 0 clinical trials conducted in humans). One recent article showed that theobromine had no effect on body weights of rats (which presumably would have occurred had it had some significant thermogenic effect). This was the result despite feeding rats about 1 gram/day of the compound. Even ignoring the differences in metabolism between rats and humans, this amount is roughly equivalent to consuming 100-200 grams by a human. We don't know how much theobromine is in the NV supplement, but we do know that it is something less than 267 mg (by checking the Supplement Facts label on the NV website). So, by taking the supplement, one consumes something less than 0.25 grams when the equivalent of 100-200 grams showed no effect on body weight in rats.

Here is the reference for this information:
Inoue H, Kobayashi-Hattori K, Horiuchi Y, Oishi Y, Arai S, Takita T. Regulation of the body fat percentage in developmental-stage rats by methylxanthine derivatives in a high-fat diet. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2006 May;70(5):1134-9.

Posted by: Chris | August 15, 2006 at 12:36 PM

Is it okay to take the NV diet pill while on birth control?

Posted by: Lisa | February 07, 2007 at 11:29 AM