On the other hand, one couldn’t help but notice that one high-profile weight loss product – Cortislim, was conspicuously absent from the report. This is noteworthy in part because Cortislim is perhaps the best-known diet product on the market. Secondly, both Cynaumon and Cortislim have caught the attention of many because of the unusual "take the high road" nature of their advertising. To gain a better perspective as to why Cortislim was possibly able to avoid the 20/20 cross hairs, we visited with Greg Cynaumon, Ph.D., or Dr. Greg as he is known to a wide audience. Cynaumon, a doctor of psychology, had an interesting perspective.

“I think any advertiser – from McDonalds to Cingular Wireless – if examined under the microscope of an ABC 20/20 type show would experience a quickened pulse at a minimum,” Cynaumon cautioned. “But diet products have always been the scourge of the advertising industry. I mean, dating back to when I had my radio show, diet product advertising copy was often a complete embarrassment for a host to have to read. I always got this sense that many weight loss advertisers just said whatever they wanted to sell product regardless of whether it was the truth or not.” Cynaumon went on to commend ABC and their 20/20 staff for what he called a terrific investigative piece that was long overdue.

According to Cynaumon, "20/20 did a great job of disclosing a dirty trick that some products pull in order to get good before and after pictures of their product users. For instance, they revealed how a before picture of a woman was actually taken when she was pregnant. Then they took the after picture after she delivered her baby and lost about 30 pounds."

As far as the product - Cortislim - that Dr. Cynaumon both uses and speaks on behalf of, he comments, "Cortislim is the only weight loss product I know of that passes its advertising copy through two Federal Trade Commission attorneys before they put it out there. As a spokesperson for the product, that gives me a sense of security that they are doing it ethically."

Cynaumon was asked if the few ethically-minded weight loss products (like Cortislim) who are advertising the right way sell more product if they embellished the message a bit.

“Absolutely,” says Cynaumon. “People – especially people who want to lose weight and want to believe a product’s claims – are going to be highly motivated by inflated stories and weight loss claims. Cortislim doesn’t make them because they know its wrong. It’s far more preferable to set the consumer’s expectations at a reasonable level and then work to exceed them. I’m relatively sure they could make more money doing it the wrong way, but at the end of the day, you have to be able to look yourself in the mirror.”