A post is being shared on social media with a video that shows a white pad that can reduce fat, remove toxins from the body among various other benefits. Let’s fact-check these claims.
Claim: A white adhesive pad called Detox pad, which can be attached to the sole of a leg, has various health benefits like removing toxins from the body.
Fact: There is no scientific evidence to prove the effectiveness of Detox pads in removing toxins from the body, which are confirmed based on independent tests. Hence the claims made in the post are FALSE.
A reverse image search on Yandex with the screenshots of the video confirmed that the white pads shown in the video are known as Detox Pads. It is also understood that the marketers of Detox Pads claim that the product when attached to sole of a person’s leg, will remove harmful toxins and heavy metals from their body. It is also claimed that it causes weight loss and reduces anxiety and depression, among other benefits.
To further understand the Detox pads and their benefits, we looked at scientific journals and various tests and analyses done by doctors and news organisations. We found multiple articles about the effectiveness of detox pads that counter the claims made in the video of the post. According to a research article published in imedpub.com, no scientific evidence was found which proves that the Detox pads remove harmful toxins through the feet.
A Judge in the USA has banned Kinoki Foot Pads at the request of FTC. The reasons given by FTC were ‘The defendants falsely claimed to have scientific proof that the foot pads removed toxic materials from the body.’ ABC news reported that in their testing of the Detox pads, they did not find any heavy metals. NPR has performed an independent lab test in which they found no difference in the levels of metals in the used and the unused pads.
The central claim made by the marketers of the Detox pads is that they turn black after use which they say indicates that the Detox pads work. To check the truth behind it, the journalists at NPR held the Detox pad over a boiling pot, and it tuned black.
Stephen Barrett, M.D. author, and co-founder of the National Council Against Health Fraud, also runs quackwatch.org. He said in an article ‘The Detox foot pad scam’ that the pads turning black because of steam indicates that a chemical inside the pads causes that after it reacts with moisture. He also writes, ‘Real detoxification of foreign substances takes place in the liver…Sweat glands in the feet can excrete water and some dissolved substances. However, its minor role in ridding the body of unwanted substances is not changed by applying foot pads.’
USA Today and Rappler published fact-check articles on the Detox pads debunking similar claims. More information about Detox Pads can be found in these articles (here and here).
To sum it up, there is no scientific evidence to state that the Detox pads have various health benefits like removing toxins from the body and reducing body fat.
