Claire McCaskill Scolds Dr. Oz for Stretching the Truth About Diets

Jun 18, 2014 at 8:00 am
Senator McCaskill at yesterday's hearing. | YouTube
Senator McCaskill at yesterday's hearing. | YouTube

Missouri senator Claire McCaskill told Dr. Oz yesterday what we've all wanted to say to him since he first appeared on Oprah: Stop. The stay-at-home-mom's favorite doctor was called to a congressional hearing yesterday titled "Protecting Consumers from False and Deceptive Advertising of Weight-Loss Products."

The hearing was called after a Federal Trade Commission investigation into a Florida company called Pure Green Coffee, which makes fake weight-loss claims. Dr. Oz straight admitted that the products he endorses as "miracle" diets aren't backed up by science.

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"My job, I feel on the show, is to be a cheerleader for the audience. And when they don't think they have hope, when they don't think they can make it happen," Oz told McCaskill, "I want to look everywhere including alternative healing traditions for any evidence that might be supported to them."

Oz's weight-loss supplements have been widely debunked by the media, but that hasn't hurt his ratings. Oprah may not be the best source for recommendations (ahem, James Frey), yet viewers continue to tune into the Dr. Oz Show every day.

"I know you feel you're a victim. Sometimes, conduct invites being a victim," McCaskill said in the hearing, "and I think if you would be more careful maybe you wouldn't be victimized quite as much."

Watch her entire smackdown here:

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