There is no magic pill for weight loss, not even if that pill contains a tapeworm. Yet companies keep introducing and marketing such pills, because we’re human and like to eat ice cream sandwiches and wish that such a thing existed. People who bought one not-so-magic supplement are getting refund checks this week from the Federal Trade Commission.

The products made some lovely but illegal promises. Accelis, nanoSLIM, Cold MD, Germ MD, and Allergy MD promised to cause weight loss or cure cold, flu, and allergy symptoms. Those would be very nice things if the products were drugs, and had gone through safety testing and clinical trials. Making those claims about a dietary supplement is officially Not Cool, and got the company in trouble with the FTC.

The company also claimed that Allergy MD was a homeopathic medicine, which wasn’t the case: “homeopathic” isn’t a synonym for “natural medicine.”

Customers will receive refunds of an average of $71.71 each. If you bought these products, too bad: the deadline to file a claim has already passed.

FTC Sends Refund Checks to Consumers Who Bought Dietary Supplements [FTC]

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