Many Say Natural Cures Claim Hard to Swallow

March 1, 2005 — -- Perhaps you've seen Kevin Trudeau on television, starring in infomercials about natural cures for everything from cancer to wrinkles.

Trudeau is also at war with the Federal Trade Commission. Since his release from prison for credit card fraud in the 1990s, Trudeau has been repeatedly sued by the FTC for allegedly making unsubstantiated claims in his infomercials and falsely advertising the products he was selling.

Each time, Trudeau has settled out of court and continued to deny any wrongdoing.

Under his most recent settlement from September 2004, Trudeau agreed to an unprecedented lifetime ban from the infomercial industry, except for infomercials about informational publications, including books.

When the settlement was signed, the commission issued a press release saying it had "shut down an infomercial empire that has misled American consumers for years" and "other habitual false advertisers should take a lesson."

Daniel Kaufman, an attorney with the FTC told "Good Morning America," "I would describe him as being a habitual fraud artist. The simple fact is, once Kevin Trudeau stops lying to consumers, we will stop suing him."

Trudeau says the government got it all wrong in that press release and in a letter to "Good Morning America," he said that because he has been an outspoken critic of the government, "regulatory agencies have taken an unprecedented stand in attacking me in an attempt to drive me out of business and discredit me."

Trudeau also points out that in the FTC settlements, there has never been a finding or an admission of wrongdoing by him. He has filed lawsuits demanding a retraction of the press release and money. The FTC said it will not make a retraction.

Under his agreement with the FTC, Trudeau is allowed to make infomercials about books. And he is doing just that as author of "Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About," which is on Amazon.com's best-seller list.

The book covers a range of diseases and ailments, including arthritis, migraines, pain, headaches, cancer and heart disease. Trudeau says the vast majority of consumers who have bought the book, which he published himself, are thrilled.

There are positive reviews of the book on Amazon.com, but other readers complain it's "absolutely not as advertised" and should be entitled "Natural Cures I Won't Tell You About."