'Lost money and got sick' because of believing in fast weight loss ads

Taking advantage of the desire to lose weight quickly, many cosmetic establishments have advertised on social networks about "miraculous" weight loss methods, "exclusive" technology, along with miraculous transformation images before and after the procedure, causing many gullible people to "fall into the trap". As a result, many cases not only fail to achieve the desired body shape but also suffer from serious physical and mental complications;

Disability due to advertising

After giving birth to her second child, Ms. CL (39 years old, living in Ho Chi Minh City) began to lose control of her weight. Reaching 80 kg with a height of 1m59, her body became even heavier, especially her sagging lower abdomen, making her afraid to communicate, lose confidence, and not dare to look at herself in the mirror.

In early 2024, Ms. CL went to a spa that was advertised heavily on social networks such as: "Exclusive technology, lose 6 - 10kg immediately in just 60 minutes, guaranteed to be young and beautiful", "double refund if not effective", "liposuction does not regain weight"... Along with that were images and clips of a person with a large, flabby, sagging belly who, after just one liposuction, immediately had a standard body shape, with an hourglass waist and flat stomach skin.

Ms. CL said that the spa staff advised her on this new technology of liposuction and excess skin removal that is painless and effective quickly. With the desire to lose weight quickly, without any doubts, Ms. CL sold 2 gold bars, equivalent to 160 million VND, to have liposuction and excess skin removal. Although it was advertised as painless and she was anesthetized, when performing this service, she still had to endure pain for 1 hour. After the surgery, she went home and followed the spa's instructions, wearing a corset.

However, after only a week, her abdomen began to show unusual signs, hardening, large lumps, and shriveled skin. Despite trying to massage, the condition not only did not improve but also became worse with bumps and dents. After that, she had to go to the hospital to remove the fibrous masses and restore muscle tension, but her lower abdomen still changed color and had long scars.

“I was completely devastated, lost all confidence, and didn't even dare to be intimate with my husband because my stomach was worse than before I lost fat. My weight remained at 80 kg," said Ms. CL.

Dr. Lam Van Hoang, Director of the Weight Loss Center at Tam Anh Hospital, said that Ms. CL's case is just one of many cases of failed weight loss, with complications before coming to the Weight Loss Center at Tam Anh Hospital. Most of them have the mentality of wanting to lose weight quickly, lose a lot of weight without anticipating the bad consequences that may occur.

A typical case is Mr. VHM (32 years old, Binh Duong) who spent nearly 20 million VND to implant threads in his abdomen at an oriental medicine facility to lose weight. According to Mr. VHM, after 4 times of implanting threads, his weight remained at 95 kg, not only that, the implanted thread area was still swollen, causing him to have a fever. Or the case of Ms. LTA (42 years old, Long An) who also went to a spa with the desire to lose weight from 71 kg to 50 kg. At this spa, the staff advised her to treat her with unlabeled, unknown origin "fat-elimination support" drugs, costing up to 120 million VND. Ms. LTA said that she followed the treatment for 1 week and then stopped because she had continuous diarrhea, fatigue, loss of strength, and was not even healthy enough to go to work.

Many risks of complications from unlicensed facilities

Previously, hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City received many emergency cases of anaphylactic shock after liposuction at unlicensed cosmetic clinics. Specifically, at the end of 2024, Gia Dinh People's Hospital (Binh Thanh District) received a young man hospitalized with cellulitis of the abdominal wall in the lower abdomen and penis after liposuction for 20 million VND at the Cosmetic Clinic, belonging to Rita Cosmetic Clinic Company Limited (address: 314 Cao Thang, Ward 12, District 10, Ho Chi Minh City).

According to the confirmation of the Inspector of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the liposuction of the above clinic exceeded the scope of technical expertise approved by the Department of Health, and the practitioner was not registered to practice medicine.

Dr. Lam Van Hoang said that not everyone can apply the same weight loss regimen, because each individual has different absorption and metabolism of nutrients. People with underlying diseases also have different risks of weight gain, so all obesity treatment drugs must be prescribed by a doctor, because obesity has many causes.

Patients need to see a doctor, undergo in-depth testing, and come up with a treatment solution that combines nutrition, exercise, medication, and management of underlying diseases to reduce the risk of complications. Do not attempt to lose weight on your own using methods such as extreme fasting, using functional foods and weight loss drugs of unknown origin, and avoid liposuction and surgery at facilities not licensed by the Ministry of Health.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, in the medical field, for weight loss activities, the Ministry of Health has issued a professional document "Guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of obesity". Accordingly, the general treatment principle is lifestyle intervention, which is the foundation to ensure sustainable and safe weight loss, including nutritional interventions, physical exercise, behavioral changes, psychological support, drug treatment, and coordination of many specialties.

In addition, the guidance document has not yet recorded the use of Laser and RF machines in weight loss treatment. In addition, in the field of traditional medicine, the Ministry of Health has allowed the implementation of a list of techniques in supporting weight loss in addition to activities of exercise, moderation, and proper nutrition throughout the treatment process.

Previously, the special task force of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health discovered that on the Youtube channel (at the account named "Vesta Center") there was a clip posted introducing the technology of "fat loss by implanting Insulin bio-microfibers". In addition, the Department of Health also recorded advertising content on the social networking site Facebook and posters, standees with the content "Insulin bio-microfibers - Top 1 non-invasive fat loss technology - Exclusive transfer from Spain...".

The Department of Health Inspectorate has verified the above advertisement information of the Dermatology Clinic of Olympus Vietnam Investment and Trading Joint Stock Company Branch, address K8Bis Buu Long Street, Ward 15, District 10. Through inspection, the Department of Health found that the clinic's advertisement of Insulin bio-fiber implantation service for weight loss was illegal and completely unscientific. The inspection team requested the company and the clinic to remove the advertisement content on-site and on social media platforms.

The City Department of Health recommends that people choose reputable specialized clinics with operating licenses issued by the Department of Health. People can look up information about medical examination and treatment facilities and practitioners on the search page “http://thongtin.medinet.org.vn” and look up information on public administrative sanctions at the Department of Health’s page https://thanhtra.medinet.gov.vn/.

The Department of Health calls on people who discover or suspect unlicensed medical examination and treatment facilities in the City or information advertising medical services on mass media, social networks, etc. to immediately call the hotline at 0989.401.155 or report via the "Online Health" app so that the Department of Health Inspectorate can have information and promptly handle it according to regulations.