Worried about eating too many chocolate bunnies or marshmallow Peeps this Easter? Try tucking a glob of fat into your Easter basket.
Mypetfat, a yellow blob of fake body fat, is the newest dieting aid to hit the market. It’s designed to deter dieters from packing on the extra pounds.
The fictitious fat with the catchy name is the brainchild of marketer Jay Jacobs, who lost more than 100 pounds after carrying the anatomically correct fat around with him.
Mypetfat, which comes in 1-ounce, 1-pound and 5-pound blobs, is not a miracle device, Mr. Jacobs said. He said it is simply a reminder — like putting a string on your finger — to get people to think before they eat. Mr. Jacobs claims mypetfat will make dieters more conscious of the fat they want off their bodies.
“My whole emphasis is to focus on the thinking,” Mr. Jacobs said. “You will be much more conscious of what you are doing before, during and after a meal.”
Since going public with his branded fat in January, Mr. Jacobs said he has sold between 5,000 and 6,000 pieces. The fat, which ranges from $15 to $100, is made out of a vinyl similar to that used for rubber worms for bait.
Dieters carry the pieces with them, stick the larger ones on their television sets or in their refrigerators and even bring them with them when dining out.
Mypetfat also comes with “mind stretches” that help people think in a different way — adding a new perspective to what dieters may believe about weight loss, according to the company’s Web site.
Mr. Jacobs is developing other tools to complement mypetfat such as books and a more detailed version of his Web site that will include success stories other than his own.
Not everyone believes in mypetfat’s powers.
“The idea of mypetfat is a wild one,” said Dr. Michael D. Myers, a Los Alamitos, Calif., physician who specializes in obesity and weight management. “I guess there is a sucker born every minute.”
Dieters spend billions of dollars annually on weight loss products and services to help shed extra pounds. That includes money spent on valuable items like weight-loss programs, diet foods and calorie counters, as well as far-fetched gimmicks like a slimming soap to wash away extra fat, an ear patch to curb hunger and appetite-suppressant eyeglasses.
“Reminding people to try to change behavior is something good,” Dr. Myers said. “Instead of putting it in a negative context, it should be put it in a positive context.”
Dr. Myers suggests dieters have a tangible goal instead of focusing on a fake piece of fat.
Mr. Jacobs, 46, says the fake fat isn’t new. The rubbery fat has been used for dozens of years in doctors offices and in schools. Mr. Jacobs bought it more than eight years ago but never put much thought into it until he hit his heaviest weight at 380 pounds a few years ago.
He thought if he carried it around with him — like a stress ball — it might help him change his way of thinking about food. After losing 115 pounds, Mr. Jacobs says it did.
“I’m not a doctor or a nutritionist,” said Mr. Jacobs, who still carries around the 1-ounce of fat in a silver tin to help reach his goal of losing another 100 pounds. “I’m the same as everybody else with the same challenges.”
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