I don’t see this happening anytime soon, but… A new study finds banning fast-food advertising on TV in the U.S. could reduce the number of overweight children by as much as 18 percent. But the report’s authors at the National Bureau of Economic Research question whether it would be practical to make this happen – so far, only Sweden, Norway and Finland have done this. To give you an idea of just how many unhealthy ads kids see, check out this report on advertisements for unhealthy foods during children’s programming.

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All those ads for products promoting quick, easy weight loss may be tempting. But unfortunately, they usually don’t deliver on their promises.

So, how do you know if the products are bogus?

The Federal Trade Commission shows you how to spot the seven claims that almost always mean a diet scam:

• You can eat your favorite high-calorie foods and still lose weight
• You can lose weight without diet or exercise
• A product can block the absorption of fat, carbs, or calories
• A product can make you lose more than 3 pounds a week
• A product will work for everyone
• A product will cause you to lose weight permanently
• Any patch, cream, gel, etc. can help you lose weight

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