QT Incorporated is the manufacturer of the Q-Ray
ionized bracelet
Ionized bracelets, or ionic bracelets, are a type of metal bracelet jewelry purported to affect the chi of the wearer. No claims of effectiveness made by manufacturers have ever been substantiated by independent sources, and the Federal Trade ...
and a line of
sports socks. It is headed by the
infomercial
An infomercial is a form of television commercial that resembles regular TV programming yet is intended to promote or sell a product, service or idea. It generally includes a toll-free telephone number or website. Most often used as a form of dir ...
entrepreneur, Que Te "Andrew" Park. The
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has found the bracelets are part of a scheme devised to defraud consumers.
[Court rules in FTC's favor in Q-Ray bracelet case](_blank)
U.S. Federal Trade Commission (2006)
Legal actions
The company was sued by the
Federal Trade Commission in 2003 for false advertising.
[
]
2003 FTC injunction
Mayo Clinic published a study in 2002 showing definitively that Q-Ray bracelets have no effect upon muscle pain relative to the placebo effect
A placebo ( ) is a substance or treatment which is designed to have no therapeutic value. Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like saline), sham surgery, and other procedures.
In general, placebos can aff ...
.
2006 follow-up case
On September 8, 2006, a federal judge ordered QT Inc. to pay back $22.5 million "in ill-gotten gains." The defendants could owe even more—up to $87 million—depending on how many Q-Ray customers seek refunds. U.S. Magistrate Judge Morton Denlow wrote a 136-page opinion and concluded: "Park made up the theory that the bracelet works like acupuncture or Eastern medicine. He has no testing or studies to support his theory." Thus, the theory was made "...to defraud consumers out of millions of dollars by preying on their desire to find a simple solution to alleviate their physical pain."[''Court Rules In FTC's Favor In Q-Ray Bracelet Case''](_blank)
; Federal Trade Commission; September 2009 article; retrieved . On January 3, 2007, the Seventh Circuit affirmed the lower court's ruling.
Current state of affairs
QT Inc. continues to sell Q-Ray Bracelets online.''Giver, Beware''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...
; December 17, 2007 article; retrieved .
Q-Ray also sells Q-Ray Sport Socks which are claimed to enhance energy flow, increase positive energy, increase performance, and make the wearer feel taller.
[''Biometal Socks''](_blank)
See also
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Power Balance
Power Balance is the original brand of hologram bracelets claimed by its manufacturers and vendors to use "holographic technology" to "resonate with and respond to the natural energy field of the body" to increase athletic performance. Numerous ...
*
List of topics characterized as pseudoscience
This is a list of topics that have, either currently or in the past, been characterized as pseudoscience by academics or researchers. Detailed discussion of these topics may be found on their main pages. These characterizations were made in th ...
*
Ionized bracelet
Ionized bracelets, or ionic bracelets, are a type of metal bracelet jewelry purported to affect the chi of the wearer. No claims of effectiveness made by manufacturers have ever been substantiated by independent sources, and the Federal Trade ...
*
Quackery
Quackery, often synonymous with health fraud, is the promotion of fraudulent or ignorant medical practices. A quack is a "fraudulent or ignorant pretender to medical skill" or "a person who pretends, professionally or publicly, to have skill, ...
References
{{reflist, 2
External links
''Q-Ray homepage''
Energy therapies
Socks
Hosiery brands