Plantiffs Win $10.5 Million Over Dr. Phil's Shape Up! Supplements

A 2004 lawsuit filed by three unhappy customers of Dr. Phil’s Shape Up! supplement line finally reached a settlement on September 26, 2006 and were awarded $10.5 million.The Shape Up! supplements were sold in grocery stores and Target and Wal-Mart to the tune of $120 a month. Thousand of customers who bought the products will be eligible for either replacement products or a cash settlement.

Read more about the lawsuit

Dr. Pearsall’s Comment

The take home message is: declare out loud that you take 100% responsibility for your weight problem. This is empowering because if you are 100% responsible then you have complete control to change. Permanent weight loss requires that you return to a lifestyle that is in harmony with nature. If this is your goal, the Weight Loss With Mother Nature Newsletter is a great place to start.

In my experience, permanent weight loss requires that you make positive changes on many levels including your lifestyle, diet, exercise, emotions, stress management, goals, spiritual foundation and many more. I would like to offer my program to these three plaintiffs to help them lose weight but they would most likely turn me down since my pockets are not deep enough to sue me for their failings. I’m not a fan of Dr. Phil but I do feel sorry for him that his company has been taken advantage of by our laughable legal system. The same could easily happen to you and I as no one is safe from frivolous lawsuits. I encourage everyone in America to use asset protection strategies.

America, please wake up and take responsibility for yourselves and stop playing the victim! Anyone who thinks they can take a pill and do nothing else to lose weight will be gravely disappointed.

Ok, so Dr. Phil’s vitamins didn’t work for some people. If after one month, they didn’t have any results, they could have asked for their $120 back and moved on. Instead three scammers (and anyone else who wants to get on board) get rewarded $10.5 million dollars because they believed all they had to do was take Phil's pills and the fat would magically disappear. This is no different than the people who filed a lawsuit against the fast food industry for selling junk food that "made" them fat.

In addition, Dr. Phil’s training is in psychology not nutrition. Since Dr. Phil received his degree in psychology, one must ask oneself questions, such as what training does he have in the area of nutrition and supplement formulations? As I elaborate on in my review of Dr. Phil's weight loss book The Ultimate Weight Solution, (see Diet Reviews on the home page), Dr. Phil is not an expert in nutrition and he provides incorrect nutritional advice in his book. Those who bought Dr. Phil's products and were disappointed could use more discernment in their choice of a weight loss guru.

First of all, why are people following a weight loss program designed by someone who is overweight? Dr. Phil who is 6’4, 240 pounds has a BMI of 29.2 and he is clearly overweight and .8 points short of OBESITY. Obviously the supplements are not helping him.

Ah America, home of the brave, land of the litigious (lawsuits). The ability for anyone to sue anyone for millions of dollars over frivolous matters makes the U.S. a frightening country to live in. No one is safe from the greedy talons of those looking to make an easy buck and the lawyers who represent them.