The Miracle Cure Diet is also known as the Miracle Cleanse Diet and the 7-Day Miracle Cleanse.
The 7-Day Miracle Cleanse was introduced in 2003 by 7-Day Marketing Inc., owned by Paris DeAguero. The diet was marketed with a 30-minute infomercial featuring DeAguero as "The Healthman." There was no scientific evidence to back up what DeAguero was marketing. Both the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission investigated DeAguero and took action against him.
Diet Program
The Miracle Cure Plan consisted of a cleanse kit, instruction manual and three dietary supplements. There was the Herbal Mucus Eliminator, the Super Boost Green Mix and Parasine 2 mix. The diet allowed you to eat only fresh fruit and vegetables. It also required drinking a large amount of distilled water. The diet regime was claimed to detox the system and remove toxic waste from the digestive tract. The diet system cost $293, and it was recommended that you carry out a cleanse at least six times a year.
Claims
The commercial that was used to promote the Miracle Cleanse/Cure Diet stated that using the program would give you "perfect health." According to the FTC's complaint, DeAguero also claimed that following the regime would give your body immunity to all diseases, even claiming that it could cure cancer and AIDS. The diet was supposed to make you lose copious amounts of weight in one week, and it could also make you live longer,
The Truth
There is little evidence to show that detoxing the system can remove toxins from the body. Waste is removed naturally through the kidneys and the liver. Therefore detox diets may not be necessary, according to the MayoClinic.org website.
What Happened?
In 2004, the FDA instructed DeAguero to eliminate the colonic irrigation device from the package that 7-Day Marketing Inc. was selling. The device had not been previously approved by the FDA. In 2008, the FTC banned DeAguero and his wife from "any involvement in infomercials for any product, program, or service" or from making health claims for any product in any advertising medium. They were also fined more than $14 million, suspended due to inability to pay.
Warning
Diets that claim to cure cancer and other life-threatening illnesses should be looked upon with caution. You should consult your doctor before embarking on any restrictive diet regime.
References
- Informercial Watch: Don't Buy the 7-Day Miracle Cleanse
- MayoClinic.org: Do Detox Diets Offer any Health Benefits?
- FDA: Inspections, Compliance, Enforcement and Criminal Investigations: 7-Day Miracle Cleanse
- Federal Trade Commission: Marketers of 7 Day Miracle Cleanse Program Banned From Infomercials
- Federal Trade Commission: Complaint for Permanent Injunction and Other Equitable Relief
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