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Type of Counseling: company website, interactive tools

Typical Cost: under $250

Type Program: do-it-yourself, meal replacements

Type of Foods Used: liquid shakes, nutrition bars, regular grocery store foods

At-Home or Direct Mail Plan Available? Yes

Headquarters

Slim-Fast Foods

777 South Flagler Drive

West Tower, Suite 1400

W. Palm Beach, FL 33401

561-833-9920

Consumer phone line: 1-800-SLIM-777 (800-754-6777)

Website: www.slimfast.com

Slim-Fast Foods Company, one of the dominant players in the meal replacements, was bought by European food giant Unilever in April 2000. Retail sales of Slim-Fast reached a peak of $600+ million 4-5 years ago, but have declined in recent years, to about $430 million as of 2004.  With a product line of ready-to-drink nutritional supplements, foods, powders and bars, the company is still a major player in the U.S. meal replacement category. This company has actually been in the weight loss business longer than even Weight Watchers. As early as 1956, the company introduced Slim-Mint gum,  the first product in its line of diet aids. Products are sold via chain drugstores, mass merchandisers, supermarket chains and drug wholesalers.

Slim-Fast was first marketed in 1977 by Thompson Medical Company. The meal replacement powder was the brainchild of S. Daniel Abraham, a former salesman. Slim-Fast became a huge hit after Wal-Mart, among other retailers, began to stock it.

Thompson Medical/Slim-Fast once controlled more than 70% of the U.S. appetite suppressant and meal replacement market. About 1 million Americans regularly reach for a Slim-Fast can or mix a scoop of powered Slim-Fast formula once or twice a day.

In recent years, Slim-Fast executives started targeting physicians and other health professionals who advise patients about losing weight. The company meets with doctors at conventions and gives away free samples, along with literature about the shake, much the same way big pharmaceutical companies operate.

Thompson Medical's growth has been a combination of very intelligent marketing, good timing, the absence of problems or lawsuits against the company or its product, and several key strategic alliances. The company is still a formidable force in the overall weight loss industry.

• The product is widely available and inexpensive, an advantage when the economy turns bad.

• It’s heavily advertised.

• The plan has achieved a greater penetration of the male dieter market than other competitors.

• Thompson has a long track record and history in the retail diet aids business.

• An ample number of product forms and variations has been created, to extend the potential user base.

In 1976, the company introduced Dexatrim, its first really big product. Slim-Fast was introduced in 1977, but demand fell dramatically later that year when 59 dieters died from other liquid diets. Though Slim-Fast was not involved, its sales virtually disappeared because of public fears over liquid diets in general.

Slim-Fast sales more than doubled after Oprah Winfrey in 1988 used a medically supervised meal replacement, Optifast, and lost more than 50 pounds. Capitalizing on that momentum, the company hired a line of celebrities, including former New York Mayor Ed Koch and entertainer Kathie Lee Gifford to sell Slim-Fast.

Thompson formed a totally new foods unit, Slim-Fast Foods, and moved into reduced-calorie snack foods. It wanted to introduce products that complement Slim-Fast, such as "other shakes, nutrition bars and other snacks". The firm's 140-calorie Slim-Fast Nutrition bar was introduced in 1983, along with ready-to-drink cans of the Ultra Slim-Fast shakes.

Interestingly, men are said to constitute only 10% of those on commercial diet plans overall, but as much as 30% of Slim-Fast users. Men typically don’t join formal commercial weight loss programs such as Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig. They prefer to lose weight on their own, and consume low-cal foods and beverages in increasing numbers.

The Slim-Fast Optima Diet Plan has been designed to make weight-loss as easy as possible. There is nothing to count, no need to measure portions, you don't need to eliminate anything from your diet; all foods are OK, and no foods are forbidden. The plan involves 6 small meals/snacks per day, using Slim-Fast products for two meals and a snack and the rest of the day you're on your own, to prepare a "sensible" dinner.

It's marketed as having four keys to success: 1) the diet itself and portion control (220 calorie shakes that replace your breakfast and lunch), 2) physical activity, 3) Tools for Success (online downloads and BMI calculators, for example), and 4) Advice & Support section of the Slim-Fast website (hotline, success stories, chat room).

This is a 1200-calorie per day plan that combines nutrient-dense meal replacements with healthy snacks and foods, to control your caloric intake. The shakes, which come in several flavors, come in powder form and ready-to-drink cans. A typical daily menu might be as follows:

Breakfast… Slim-Fast meal replacement shake or meal bar

Lunch… Slim-Fast soup or pasta, combined with a salad and vegetables (grocery store foods)

Afternoon Snack… a low-fat frozen snack or Slim-Fast bar

Dinner… a "sensible" meal (reasonable portion sizes) of grocery store food, amounting to 600-700 calories

You are advised to drink plenty of water (most diet plans suggest 8 glasses a day), and exercise for at least 30 minutes every day.

Once you reach your weight-loss goal, just replace one meal a day with a Slim-Fast meal and stick with the healthy lifestyle changes that you have made, such as exercising, and you will maintain your weight. One study found that people who used Slim-Fast for ten years off and on to maintain their weight, were on average 33 pounds lighter than a similar group that did not use Slim·Fast.

Cost is about $95 per month for the shakes.

This is one of the better diet websites one will find. The FREE online club has lots of features and helpful information, covering such topics as: a healthy dining out guide, stress relief, a fitness expert, frequently asked questions, and a reference library. The website has registered dietitians to answer questions. The website’s information is also available in Spanish, a rarity among diet websites. Slim-Fast has separate websites for the following nations other than the United States: Australia, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

Once you sign up for the online club, member benefits include the following:

• Individualized meal plans

• Personalized fitness program and activity log

• Food and exercise journals

• Weight chart

• Shopping lists

• Buddy program

• The ability to ask a dietitian your personal nutrition questions

• Live chat room

• Message boards

• Newsletter

• Notification of coupons and promotional offers.

Once you answer a few questions and are enrolled in the online club, a personalized plan is created for you (My Meal Plan, My Fitness Plan, My Nutrition Log, My Activity Log). In the meal plan, each week you are given a menu of diverse meals, nutritional information, and a shopping list. The fitness plan provides an initial plan with 25+ exercises, cardio, strength training, and animated demonstrations.

The Slim-Fast website also has a BMI calculator, men’s and women’s sections, success stories, and a section directed to healthcare professionals. If a doctor, for example, is interested in referring one of his/her patients to the Slim-Fast plan, they can, via the website, obtain information such as: a weight loss readiness questionnaire, counseling patients about weight, medications’ effect on weight gain, and the assessment of patients.

This website also has links to articles covering exercise, yoga and personal training, and more.

There have been 27 studies published in medical journals that provide evidence and credibility that the Slim-Fast Plan is healthy and effective. These research studies have also proven that the easiest way to lose weight and keep it off for the long term is by incorporating meal replacements, like Slim-Fast, into your regular daily routine. In addition, the company claims that several government and health organizations have supported the merits of Slim-Fast and meal replacements in general. These include the: American Heart Association, NAASO, American Obesity Association, American Diabetes Association, Shape Up America, and the American Dietetic Association.

BestDietForMe.com analysts are of the opinion that Slim-Fast, while very successful in the past, has "grown up" under its new owner, Unilever. It used to be simply a meal replacement shake product sold via retailers as a do-it-yourself diet plan. However, seeing what its competitors have done on the Web, the company has developed a method of providing the support element that was missing. Its website is actually a very "deep" one, rich in free and useful information and providing interactive support via chat rooms, a buddy program, and personalized meal and exercise programs. As a self-help plan, we feel that this is one of the better ones, with excellent value (since the online club is free of charge). In addition, we have not seen many diet company websites where the material is available in Spanish as well as English, and customized websites are available for several  different countries.

However, this is still a do-it-yourself weight loss plan that relies in large part on the dieter's discipline to replace their two meals a day with shakes and other company products. The shakes may not be filling enough to satisfy many people and with time they tend to miss the sensations of chewing a crunching. Consequently, this plan may be more suited to the short term rather than several months or longer.

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