From free check-ups to 200,000 drams worth of medicine: how the mechanism of false advertising based on health works
When a “free consultation” turns into a sale, and a “miracle weight loss solution” turns into a health risk
“Free medical check-up”, “Lose weight in just a few days”, “100% natural remedy”, “without diet and physical exertion”, “treatment that doctors don’t tell you about”.
It has long been no longer surprising to encounter such offers on social networks and through phone calls. The offers are different, but their mechanism is often the same: turning a person’s most sensitive desire into a sales tool.
One wants to lose weight, another wants to get rid of a health problem that has plagued them for years, a third wants to have a child, and a fourth simply wants to recover quickly. And it is on this desire that manipulation is built.
It all starts with “free”
Recently, you can hear similar stories from different people: they have called and offered a free examination or consultation. Sometimes it is promised that with the help of a special device it is possible to identify many problems in the body in just a few minutes.
The first signal should be on here.
What test is being performed? Who performs it? Where is the licensed medical facility? What equipment is used? Who interprets the results?
If, instead of these questions, a person is immediately offered a “special course,” a “natural remedy,” or a “miracle cure,” then the free service may not actually be a health service, but the first step in a sale. The second step is to create fear.
One of the most powerful tools of manipulative selling is convincing a person that they have a problem that they were previously unaware of.
- “Your body is poisoned.”
- “Your metabolism isn’t working.”
- “You have fluid buildup.”
- “If you don’t treat it now, the condition will get worse.”
- “You need this course.”
Such formulations transport a person into a realm of fear and haste. And a frightened person checks information less and makes decisions more quickly.
The classic formula of manipulation works here: create a problem → scare → offer the only “solution.”
“Today only”, “last places”, “special price”
The next step is haste.
“The promotion is valid only today.”
“Only 5 packages left.”
“The special price is just for you.”
“If you don’t order now, it won’t be the same price tomorrow.”
This technique is called the scarcity effect. It forces people to make a decision not based on whether they really need the product, but on whether they should buy it now or lose the opportunity.
And this is where a “free consultation” can turn into a sale worth hundreds of thousands of drams.
200 thousand drams for “treatment”
During this study, we spoke with people who had participated in similar “free” consultations or surveys.
One of the people we spoke to said that he had sought such an offer due to fluid accumulation in his knee and difficulty walking. He was offered various medications, on which, according to him, he spent a total of about 200 thousand drams.
After about a month or two of using it, the expected results were not there. On the contrary, according to him, his condition had worsened, his leg had swollen, and walking had become more difficult.
He received the final solution after consulting a doctor, receiving the necessary medical care and undergoing surgery.
This story, of course, does not prove that the drug in question caused the deterioration of health; only a specialist can give such a medical conclusion. But the story is important for another reason: the person first paid a lot of money, wasted time, and only then sought professional medical help.
And is a “100 percent natural” weight loss product really natural?
The situation is even more dangerous when it comes to products sold for weight loss.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regularly issues warnings about weight-loss products that do not list pharmacologically active ingredients on their labels. The FDA database also published similar cases in 2026, including a warning about the product “Detoxi Slim” in July 2026.
In some cases, laboratory tests have detected **sibutramine** and other undeclared pharmacological substances. The FDA notes that such products are sometimes presented as “natural” or dietary supplements and sold through social media and online platforms.
In other words, the word “natural” is not a safety certificate.
The World Health Organization also warns about counterfeit and substandard medical products. They may contain the wrong ingredient, the wrong dosage, not contain the declared active ingredient at all, or contain harmful substances. The WHO notes that such products are also often distributed online and through unauthorized sources.
There is also a control system in Armenia.
In Armenia, drug advertising is not simply regulated by the principle of “whoever wants to publish whatever they want.”
The Center for Drug and Medical Technology Expertise informs that from April 6, 2025, a new regulation will come into effect, according to which drug advertising material is subject to preliminary examination, and its compliance with the requirements of the Law “On Drugs” is assessed for advertising permission.
Information on drugs registered in the Republic of Armenia and those not guaranteed registration is also published in the same system.
And the relevant professional body of the Republic of Armenia also has a separate section on counterfeit pharmaceutical products and has published a list of counterfeit drugs detected in 2021-2024.
These facts are important because they show that the problem is not just the “people are too gullible” narrative. There is also the issue of market, advertising, product registration, and consumer protection oversight.
Why do we believe?
The most interesting part of this story, however, is not the drug itself.
We are not being sold the pill, but hope.
A person who wants to lose weight is not just being sold a dietary supplement, but a “new body.”
A person who has had a health problem for years is not being sold a product, but “the opportunity to finally be cured.”
A person who wants to have a child is being sold the “last chance.”
And the stronger a person’s desire, the easier it is to shift their attention from facts to promises.
This is the most dangerous part of manipulation.
“Let it be at home” : the same mechanism also works during regular shopping
The same mechanism can be observed outside the topic of health.
In our small, non-representative survey, most of the 100 people of different ages and genders described roughly the same behavior:
“There was no need, but I thought, ‘It’s a house, let it be.’ The price was reasonable.”
In other words, people sometimes don’t buy what they need. They buy what advertising has managed to present as necessary.
This is where discounting, limited supply, social comparison, the idea that “everyone already has it” and the fear of missing out come into play.
How to recognize manipulative health advertising
The next time you see a weight loss, healing, or “body cleanse” product, stop and ask yourself at least seven questions:
- Who sells this product?
Is there a real company, address, responsible person?
- Who gives medical advice?
Is there an appropriate specialist and licensed medical facility?
- Is the product registered?
Can you find information about it in official sources?
- What does the advertisement promise?
Phrases like “100% cure,” “guaranteed results,” and “no side effects” are serious red flags.
- Why is the proposal urgent?
Is it really limited, or do they just want you to not have time to think?
- Is there independent evidence?
“Customer stories” presented in advertisements alone are not scientific evidence.
- What will happen if I don’t buy now?
If the answer is simply “nothing,” then you can stop and check.
The most important fact-check before you hit the “Buy” button
The fight against disinformation is not just about exposing political fake news.
False health advertising can also constitute disinformation, when an unverified or false claim is presented as fact in order to sell a product or service to a person.
Here, fact-checking begins not on the computer screen, but right in our heads.
Stop for a moment.
Don’t believe the first promise.
Check the source.
Ask a specialist .
And most importantly, don’t confuse desire with proven fact.
Because sometimes advertising doesn’t tell us, “You want this,” but “You should want this.”
And there is a huge difference between those two.
Don’t buy out of fear. Don’t be cured by advertising. Check first.
The material was prepared to expose disinformation and manipulation mechanisms. In case of health problems, it is necessary to contact an appropriate medical professional, and to verify information about medicines or healthcare products with official sources.
Hripsime Petrasyan
The material was prepared within the framework of the Disinformation Flows Monitoring Project
#CivilSocietyCooperation #ishrarmenia #ishrfactcheck
The project is implemented with the financial support of the Federal Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany.
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