He went to prison for fraud and was ordered by the U.S. government to stop touting health products on infomercials, but Kevin Trudeau's book "Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About" is a bestseller.
Trudeau, who for years sold snoring remedies and memory enhancers through long-format commercials dressed up as talk shows, says he is a consumer advocate battling the "unholy alliance" of drug companies and government regulators.
"It's all about money. The drug industry does not want people to get healthy," he says in a commercial for his book. Trudeau says he has sold about 4 million copies of the book in less than a year, a huge amount for a self-published book marketed initially only through the Internet and television infomercials.
The book -- whose back cover says "Never get sick again!" and "Learn the specific natural cures for herpes, acid reflux, diabetes ... cancer ... and more!" -- has topped the Publishers Weekly nonfiction bestseller list for the past three weeks.
That attracted the attention of the New York Consumer Protection Board, which issued a warning this month that Trudeau promised cures he did not deliver.
"This book is exploiting and misleading people who are searching for cures to serious illnesses," said Teresa Santiago, who chairs the board. "From cover to cover, this book is a fraud," she said, adding that a doctor quoted apparently endorsing the book died in 2001.
Trudeau filed a lawsuit to stop the Consumer Protection Board from approaching TV stations to persuade them not to air his infomercials.
He says he recommends herbs, vitamins and other alternative treatments and, while urging people to consult doctors, lists cures such as shark cartilage for tumors and organic dark chocolate for stress.
"There are multiple ways to cure cancer without drugs and surgery," Trudeau told Reuters, adding that drug companies eschew natural products because they are unprofitable.
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine said it is spending more than $120 million this year investigating everything from acupuncture to chamomile tea and the
National Cancer Institute spends another $128 million.
"PARANOID FANTASY"
Stephen Barrett, a retired psychiatrist who runs a Web site called Quackwatch, described Trudeau's book as "a collection of false ideas" that included dangerous advice such as the claim that sunscreen can cause cancer so it should not be used.
"The danger of the book is it's an attempt to shape public opinion so people don't trust science-based health care."
Barrett said he too was suspicious about excessive profits in the drug industry, but said it was "paranoid fantasy" to suggest they would suppress or ignore cures.
"A lot of people are angry because drugs are so expensive," he said, explaining the book's draw. "He's promising magic."
In September, Trudeau agreed to pay $2 million to settle a U.S. Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over his claim that "Coral Calcium" could cure or prevent cancer but admitted no wrongdoing. Trudeau agreed to stop marketing health products, but he was allowed to market books.
The FTC called the case an example to "other habitual false advertisers," prompting a lawsuit from Trudeau.
FTC attorney Laura Sullivan said the regulator was watching Trudeau carefully but had taken no action over the book.
Sullivan said the FTC sanction barring him from making infomercials for anything but books was "extraordinary" and followed a string of previous fraud charges that were settled.
Trudeau, 42, was jailed for 22 months in the early 1990s over credit card fraud -- something Trudeau dismissed as nothing more than a youthful indiscretion.
Reader reviews on Amazon.com revealed strong opinions, including complaints that his book refers readers to his Web site for more information.
Trudeau's site offers monthly membership at $9.95 and lifetime membership for $499. He said he charges because he takes no advertising and he spends $1.5 million a week on infomercials.
"I'm doing this virtually as a nonprofit," he said. "I'm not doing this for the money. It's a passion."
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