Selling the Fountain of Youth

Acai

Way back in January 2009, the Better Business Bureau issued a warning to consumers to beware of online offers for free trials of acai berry–one of the many products sold on the Web that purports to promote weight loss and halt aging. Turns out many of the so-called free trials weren’t free at all–they actually hooked unsuspecting shoppers into expensive monthly shipments of acai juice or supplements. Since then, many consumer protection organizations have issued similar warnings. And last year, Oprah Winfrey and her on-air doctor Mehmet Oz sued 50 Internet retailers for improperly using their names and likenesses to advertise acai and other supplements.

But as I learned recently, these offers are still rampant on the Internet. Read more at HuffPo.