Recently I have noticed that quite a few of my friends and people I have met through work and school have gotten jobs with the "nutrition" company Herbalife. The company sells hundreds of different "health" and weight management supplements and pills all with the promise that they will allow you to achieve optimum health and wellness.  The problem I have with them is not the products themselves, weight loss products and meal replacement shakes are nothing new and if someone chooses to buy them then that is their own choice.  The problem I have with the company is its employees called "Health and Wellness Coaches."  Upon hearing the title you may believe that this is a legit position complete with a required degree or at the very least some basic training and knowledge on how to live a healthy and balanced life, but alas you would be wrong.  I already figured it was a questionable position but once a friend of mine (who drinks, eats fast food on the regular and lacks any sort of committed relationship with working out) obtained this job I began to get a bit angry.  I started researching the position more and reading people's stories about their experiences working for/with Herbalife (this guy's was great) and got even more angry. I have no problem at all with people selling products or services on an independent basis, even companies like Avon and Mary Kay don't bother me so why am I so frustrated with the Herbalife model? Because other companies say that their employees are sales representatives!  They are upfront with what they are doing and with who their employees are.  The women down the street selling Avon doesn't call herself a make up artist just because she sells mascara so why does Herbalife feel the need to call it's employees "Health and Wellness Coaches" when they aren't? Do they think they wouldn't be able to sell the products without the lie? Are they attempting to give themselves credibility? Gain customer trust (no better way to gain trust and faith in a company than to lie to people)? It just makes no sense to me.

Moving on from the fact that they lie and sell disgusting powdered shakes there is the fact that they are perpetuating the idea that weight loss can come easily and quickly.  By drinking their shakes and taking any of their numerous pill and tea supplements you will achieve the body of your dreams! And maybe even live to tell about it! The shakes also state that they contain 100 percent of the key nutrients a person needs, which seems even harder to believe considering every body requires a different amount of nutrients, (depending on age, activity level, weight etc).  Basically Herbalife is a scam as far as I am concerned and the people hawking powders and teas know about as much about health and a healthy diet as the characters on Sesame Street, (Elmo may actually may know more considering his show airs on PBS).  Speaking of children don't even get me started on the products Herbalife sells aimed at children....

Have you ever tried Herbalife? How was your experience?