Nobel Prize winner Louis Ignarro, who won the prize in medicine, “endorsed a diet supplement for the heart sold by Herbalife International Inc. in exchange for royalties and then touted the ingredients in a scientific journal, without disclosing his financial interest to the publication,”according to Bloomberg.
The supplement company, based in the Cayman Islands, which rakes in so much money (2003 revenue of $1.16 billion) that it could afford to pay the small company Ignarro formed to consult Herbalife on a supplement (comprised of ingredients that Ignarro discussed in his article) roughly $500,000. Herbalife is in the midst of a public offering, in which it is attempting to raise $193 million, so the publication was well-timed indeed for its efforts. The supplement is supposedly capable of significantly reducing the risk of heart disease even without exercise.
“Ignarro, 63, is the featured speaker in a one-hour Los Angeles based-Herbalife promotional video in which he claims Niteworks protects against heart disease, strokes, Alzheimer’s and other diseases.” You have to wonder if they watch Herbalife infomercials in Sweden?
Labels: Conflict of Interest, deals with the devil, Herbalife, Nobel Prizes, reputations, supplements