Met-Rx
Encyclopedia
MET-Rx is a brand name of nutritional supplements, originally produced by Met-Rx, Inc., a California company started by A. Scott Connelly, and sold several times since.
The brand is best known as the product to pioneer a new category of bodybuilding supplements known as Meal Replacement Powders or MRPs. It was also involved in the androstenedione
controversy in the late 1990s.
and the two began marketing to the bodybuilding and athletic communities, launching sales from the low hundreds of thousands to over $100 million annually. Connelly sold all interest in the company to Rexall Sundown for $108 million in 2000. MET-Rx is currently owned by NBTY
.
MET-Rx's meal replacements and protein powders contain a proprietary blend (known as METAMYOSYN) which consists of ingredients such as whey protein
, calcium caseinate
, egg albumen and milk
protein isolate, combined with maltodextrin
, vitamins, minerals and added amino acids.
An NBC DateLine broadcast on October 6, 1996, entitled "Hype in a Bottle" investigated MET-Rx USA, Inc. The report revealed that MET-Rx had failed to provide published peer-reviewed documentation to substantiate its advertising claims. In October 1993 the "MET-Rx Substantiation Report" was provided to David Lightsey of the National Council Against Health Fraud. The report claimed association with Cooper Clinic in Dallas, Texas. The report noted that several Dallas Cowboys had gained an average of 2.5 to 3 pounds of lean body mass weekly for six week when using a MET-Rx product - an obvious red flag. Cooper Clinic was contacted of possible misrepresentation. Cooper Clinic issued a cease and desist letter to Met-Rx from the Cooper Clinic president and medical director.
In February 1995, the Penn State Sports Medicine Newsletter (3;6) published a report titles "Is It Real or Is It Met-Rx?" that concluded, "MET-Rx ... claims of fat loss and increased muscle mass have not been proven by scientifically accepted methods".
The National Council Against Health Fraud
discussed Met-Rx in several issues of their newsletter, pointing out that the scientific claims of the manufacturer were not based on scientific studies but on the endorsement on celebrities.
, which the FTC said posed risks to consumers.
contest and as of 2004 the company claimed the brand was endorsed by 50 top athletes.
MET-Rx also sponsors dozens of athletes, bodybuilders and celebrities, as well as being the primary sponsor of the World's Strongest Man
competition. Phillip Heath, IFBB pro, and Lauren Jones
, Miss MET-Rx 2007, Fitness Model and Former WWE Diva, are among their list of endorsees.
The brand is best known as the product to pioneer a new category of bodybuilding supplements known as Meal Replacement Powders or MRPs. It was also involved in the androstenedione
Androstenedione
Androstenedione is a 19-carbon steroid hormone produced in the adrenal glands and the gonads as an intermediate step in the biochemical pathway that produces the androgen testosterone and the estrogens estrone and estradiol.-Synthesis:Androstenedione is the common precursor of male and female sex...
controversy in the late 1990s.
Company
Created by Dr. Scott Connelly, the original MET-Rx product was intended to help prevent critically ill patients from losing muscle mass. Connelly's product was marketed in cooperation with Bill PhillipsBill Phillips (author)
William Nathaniel "Bill" Phillips is an American entrepreneur and author. He is the author of the fitness book Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength. He is the author Eating for Life, founder and former editor in chief of Muscle Media magazine and the former CEO of EAS, a...
and the two began marketing to the bodybuilding and athletic communities, launching sales from the low hundreds of thousands to over $100 million annually. Connelly sold all interest in the company to Rexall Sundown for $108 million in 2000. MET-Rx is currently owned by NBTY
NBTY
NBTY, Inc., formerly known as Nature's Bounty, Inc., is a manufacturer of vitamins and nutritional supplements which are distributed under many third party brands in the United States and internationally. Its name was changed from Nature's Bounty, Inc. to NBTY, Inc...
.
Original MET-Rx MRP
The original MET-Rx meal replacement product came in two canisters - one labeled MET-Rx "base" and the other MET-Rx "plus." The instructions were to take two scoops of the base and one scoop of the plus and mix them in milk or water. As the product grew more popular, it was released combining the "base" and "plus" into one formula while removing the micellar casein component. As a result, the original METAMYOSYN blend is no longer used in MET-Rx products, as the current incarnation does not contain micellar casein.MET-Rx's meal replacements and protein powders contain a proprietary blend (known as METAMYOSYN) which consists of ingredients such as whey protein
Whey protein
Whey protein is a mixture of globular proteins isolated from whey, the liquid material created as a by-product of cheese production. Some preclinical studies in rodents have suggested that whey protein may possess anti-inflammatory or anti-cancer properties; however, human data is lacking...
, calcium caseinate
Calcium caseinate
Calcium caseinate is a protein produced from casein in skim milk. At neutral or acid pH, casein is relatively insoluble in water, and is easily separated from other milk proteins, sugars and minerals. After their removal, the casein is solubilized at a high pH with calcium hydroxide; the solution...
, egg albumen and milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
protein isolate, combined with maltodextrin
Maltodextrin
Maltodextrin is a polysaccharide that is used as a food additive. It is produced from starch by partial hydrolysis and is usually found as a creamy-white hygroscopic spraydried powder. Maltodextrin is easily digestible, being absorbed as rapidly as glucose, and might be either moderately sweet or...
, vitamins, minerals and added amino acids.
An NBC DateLine broadcast on October 6, 1996, entitled "Hype in a Bottle" investigated MET-Rx USA, Inc. The report revealed that MET-Rx had failed to provide published peer-reviewed documentation to substantiate its advertising claims. In October 1993 the "MET-Rx Substantiation Report" was provided to David Lightsey of the National Council Against Health Fraud. The report claimed association with Cooper Clinic in Dallas, Texas. The report noted that several Dallas Cowboys had gained an average of 2.5 to 3 pounds of lean body mass weekly for six week when using a MET-Rx product - an obvious red flag. Cooper Clinic was contacted of possible misrepresentation. Cooper Clinic issued a cease and desist letter to Met-Rx from the Cooper Clinic president and medical director.
In February 1995, the Penn State Sports Medicine Newsletter (3;6) published a report titles "Is It Real or Is It Met-Rx?" that concluded, "MET-Rx ... claims of fat loss and increased muscle mass have not been proven by scientifically accepted methods".
The National Council Against Health Fraud
The National Council Against Health Fraud
The National Council Against Health Fraud is a 501 non-profit, US-based organization registered in California, that describes itself as a "private nonprofit, voluntary health agency that focuses upon health misinformation, fraud, and quackery as public health problems." The NCAHF has been...
discussed Met-Rx in several issues of their newsletter, pointing out that the scientific claims of the manufacturer were not based on scientific studies but on the endorsement on celebrities.
Androstenedione
In 1999 the FTC sued Met-Rx (and rival AST) over claims that their products were not safe. Both products contain androstenedioneAndrostenedione
Androstenedione is a 19-carbon steroid hormone produced in the adrenal glands and the gonads as an intermediate step in the biochemical pathway that produces the androgen testosterone and the estrogens estrone and estradiol.-Synthesis:Androstenedione is the common precursor of male and female sex...
, which the FTC said posed risks to consumers.
Marketing
MET-Rx currently features a wide variety of television sponsorships such as the MET-Rx World's Strongest ManWorld's Strongest Man
The World's Strongest Man is a well recognised event in strength athletics and has been described by a number of highly respected authorities in the sport as the premier event in strongman. Organized by TWI, an IMG Media company, it is broadcast around the end of December each year...
contest and as of 2004 the company claimed the brand was endorsed by 50 top athletes.
MET-Rx also sponsors dozens of athletes, bodybuilders and celebrities, as well as being the primary sponsor of the World's Strongest Man
World's Strongest Man
The World's Strongest Man is a well recognised event in strength athletics and has been described by a number of highly respected authorities in the sport as the premier event in strongman. Organized by TWI, an IMG Media company, it is broadcast around the end of December each year...
competition. Phillip Heath, IFBB pro, and Lauren Jones
Lauren Jones
Lauren Lorraine Jones is an American fashion designer, business woman, former film and television actress, model, former Barker's Beauty on The Price Is Right, entrepreneur, and the CEO and Co-Founder of her eponymous brand product marketing company, Lauren Jones Footwear.-Early life:Jones was...
, Miss MET-Rx 2007, Fitness Model and Former WWE Diva, are among their list of endorsees.
Further reading
- Lightsey, David. Muscles, Speed & Lies: What the Sport Supplement Industry does not want Athletes or Consumers to Know, pp. 42–44: "Media Reports on Met-Rx". Globe Pequot, 2006. ISBN 978-1-59228-912-7.