Information on Trimspa

TrimSpa is a dietary supplement that claims to support weight loss by suppressing the appetite. Its use has been marked by controversy, including a 2007 settlement for making unsupported advertising claims and the death of its spokesperson, Anna Nicole Smith.

Background

• TrimSpa is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a dietary supplement. It is manufactured by Goen Technologies and is intended to support weight loss in users by suppressing appetite. The TrimSpa label includes other products, such as the Froodia energy bar, which was introduced in 2006.

Controversy

• TrimSpa has repeatedly been plagued by controversy. One of its original ingredients was ephedra until it was banned in the United States in 2004. In 2007, TrimSpa paid a $1.5 million settlement for making unsupported claims about the product's health benefits, effects and ingredients in its advertising. Later that same year, TrimSpa's celebrity spokesperson, Anna Nicole Smith, died of a prescription drug overdose. In 2008, the company that manufactures TrimSpa auctioned off TrimSpa bottles, cars and motorcycles after announcing that it was more than $30 million in debt.

Ingredients

• The most current formulation of TrimSpa, called TrimSpaX32, contains the African succulent Hoodia, which is purported to be an appetite suppressant despite a lack of scientific evidence to support that claim. Other ingredients include chromium, cocoa extract and green tea extract.