Abdominal weight loss belts have become popular with consumers seeking ways to reduce girth and lose belly fat. The late-night infomercials and Internet ads promise you rock-hard or six-pack abs without situps, crunches or other forms of tortuous abdominal exercises. However, the Federal Trade Commission states that consumers should be wary of all exercise equipment that promises weight loss and muscle toning without exercise, including the ones that promise to burn fat on one particular area of your body.
Features
Abdominal weight loss belts come with small pads that you attach to your bare skin. Electrodes inside the pads send a series of electrical pulses to selected locations on your stomach. These pulses make the affected muscles contract then release, to simulate the effect of exercise.
FDA Clearance
Trained physical therapists often use electrical stimulation devices for muscle rehabilitation in healthcare settings. Abdominal belts that use electrical muscle stimulation are medical devices, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The agency must preapprove the sale of these devices to consumers and healthcare facilities. As of 2010, the Slendertone Flex is the only abdominal EMS belt that has FDA clearance for firming, toning and strengthening your abdominal muscles.
Legal Actions
As early as 2002, the Federal Trade Commission began to file legal charges against abdominal EMS belt sellers. The FTC's complaint charged that the AB Energizer, AbTronic and Fast Abs distributors used marketing messages that falsely claimed that the belts contributed to weight loss. In one case, the manufacturer had claimed that the EMS belt's effect on abdominal muscles was superior to physical exercise. These three cases alone resulted in $12 million in settlements, according to "The Wall Street Journal."
Research Studies
Sports Science and Physical Therapy staff at the University of Wisconsin conducted a small study of the effects of from abdominal EMS belts in 2004. John Pocari et al. measured the effect of self-administered abdominal neuromuscular stimulation over eight weeks. The test subjects used the devices for 20 to 40 minutes daily, five days a week.
The researchers published the results in the "Journal of Sports Science and Medicine," March 2005 in the article titled "The Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Training on Abdominal Strength, Endurance, and Selected Anthropometric Measures." They reported that the test subjects lost an average of 1.38 inches of waist girth and increased abdominal strength by 58 percent. The control group participants had no significant changes in these measurements. Neither group reported weight loss. "The Wall Street Journal" research on abdominal belts notes that a former Slendertone belt distributor sponsored the University of Wisconsin study
Warnings
The FDA warns consumers that abdominal belts have caused minor and serious injuries. In one instance, the electrical impulses interfered with a woman's defibrillator, causing her to lose consciousness. Consumers have also reported pain, burns, bruises and skin irritation to the FDA. Pregnant women should never use these belts.
References
- Federal Trade Commission: FTC Charges Three Top-selling Electronic Abdominal Exercise Belts with Making False Claims
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Electronic Muscle Stimulators
- "Journal of Sports Science and Medicine"; The Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Training on Abdominal Strength, Endurance, and Selected Anthropometric Measures; Porcari, J., et al; March 2005
- "The Wall Street Journal": Cinching Your Belt Without a Crunch; Laura Johannes; 2009
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