Better Business Bureau Issues Acai Berry Warning

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

I've tried it in capsule form.
I didn't see any noticeable
difference. I decided to not
re-purchase.

I didn't use the trial order
method.

The following was reported by
Maria M. Perotin, Star Telegram.

Lose weight! Prevent cancer!
Fight Alzheimer’s disease with
acai berries! It worked for your
favorite celebrity!

Never heard of acai? With just a
quick search on the Internet, you
can read countless pitches for the
dark Brazilian berry.

There’s so much buzz, in fact, that
the Better Business Bureau at Fort
Worth this week issued a warning to
consumers.

Makers of acai supplements have
reeled in thousands of consumers
nationwide with "free" trial offers,
only to follow up with month after
month of unwanted credit card charges,
said John Riggins, chief executive
of the Fort Worth bureau.

One Arlington-based company —
FXSupplements.com — has drawn 139
complaints from consumers since November.

FX offers customers a free trial but
then quickly starts imposing charges
of about $80 a month, sometimes before
consumers have even received their
first bottle of Acai Maxx in the
mail, Riggins said.

"The people getting burned on this
really badly are the ones getting
charged over and over and over,"
Riggins said. "They can’t get the
company to pick up the phone or
answer an e-mail."

On Tuesday, the toll-free phone
number that’s listed on FX’s Web
site was disconnected.

An employee who answered a
separate phone number for Acai
Maxx billing inquiries said the
company wouldn’t comment except
to written questions sent by
mail to its Arlington address.

Riggins also raised concerns about
some acai sellers’ claims about the
products’ benefits and about implied
endorsements from Oprah Winfrey and
other celebrities who haven’t
actually suggested the berry is
a cure-all.

"The actual abilities of the
product are unknown right now,
really," he said. "Some really
far-reaching claims are just
unsubstantiated."

Touted among the latest weight-loss
crazes, acai is available in pills,
powders, fruit smoothies and even
as frozen pulp.

Amy Goodson, a dietitian at Texas
Health Harris Methodist Hospital
Fort Worth, said acai is the latest
in a string of exotic "super fruits"
that are marketed as if they have
unique abilities.

In fact, many fruits — even the humble
banana — are chock-full of many of
the same vitamins, minerals and
antioxidants.

"Do I think that this is a healthy
fruit? Sure," Goodson said. "Is it
going to cure every disease and
keep you from getting a disease?
By no means."

Nicole Chase, a dietitian at Plaza
Medical Center of Fort Worth, said
people can consume all the nutrients
they need by eating a variety of
healthy foods, without adding any
expensive supplements.

Her weight-loss advice: Eat small meals,
with lots of fiber, fruits and
vegetables. Avoid foods that are fried
or smothered in sauces. And get regular
exercise.

Goodson also cautioned against fad diets.

"If it just pops out and it’s on the front
of every magazine, probably be leery of
that," she said. "At the end of the day,
it’s eating well and exercising, which is
not usually what people technically want
to hear."

http://www.star-telegram.com/855/story/1127053.html