TV health guru Dr. Oz began promoting green coffee extract on his program in 2012 – when he introduced the product to his audience with the help of a celebrity nutritionist named Dr. Lindsey Duncan to vouch for the scientific research behind the product. When it came to light that Duncan made millions selling and promoting green coffee extract, the conflict of interest brought the endorsement to the attention of the Texas Attorney General. The research that the two “doctors” had presented was retracted and Duncan’s mail-order medical degree failed to impress the Federal Trade Commission who followed up with a knock-out punch in the form of false advertising charges.
This did not prevent green coffee bean extract from being promoted and sold in American and Canadian health food stores. A recent National Post article used this event as a launching pad to point out the shortcomings of Health Canada’s “risk-based approach to safety and efficacy” for the fact that the product is still available to Canadian consumers.
But, a spokesperson for the Natural and Non-Prescription Health Products Directorate explained that while it is a risk-based system, it’s not a leaky bucket. “There’s no compromise on safety and there’s no compromise on the quality of products.” If a product claims to contain anti-oxidants, it will likely be approved, but if it claims to cure cancer and contains nothing more than anti-oxidants, it will be refused.
Before a manufacturer claims on the label that their product can cure a condition, they’d better have some pretty compelling evidence – or they won’t get approval. But if, instead of using words like “cure,” a company simply suggests that a product supports a healthy lifestyle or helps you deal with a troublesome condition – the product is more likely to be approved.
Health Canada has set up a website to give consumer advice about weighing the claims of weight loss products. And following the FTC settlement, the Canadian Health Food Association said, “a retraction does not tell us anything about the effectiveness or safety of the treatment.” They suggested that there is a “wider body of research to support various health claims [about green coffee bean extract].”
