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Wednesday June 9, 9:05 am ET
Medifast Executive Appointed to Maryland State Board of
Directors for the American Diabetes Association
OWINGS MILLS, Md., June 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Medifast, Inc. (Amex: MED - News) announced today that the
new "Maintain by Medifast" low-carb program was
successfully launched in selected regions on a prominent
TV retailer this week. As a result of its success, this
new Medifast program will be launched on a national cable
TV retailer in July. "Maintain by Medifast" is a
low-calorie, soy-based, low glycemic formula patented by
Medifast that is incorporated into a low carbohydrate diet
that has provided significant weight loss results and
overall health improvements in clinical studies. "Maintain
by Medifast" offers consumers a special 28-day program
that will provide immediate results on the journey to
long-term health improvement.
Medifast's Chairman of the board, Bradley T. MacDonald,
also announced that its Corporate Executive Vice
President, Retired Maj. Gen. Leo V. Williams, III, USMCR,
was elected to the Maryland State Board of Directors of
the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and is
representing the state at the National ADA Conference
currently taking place in Orlando.
"Leo has an exemplary record of public service, serving
his country for 33 years in the Marine Corps and he
continues to serve by providing leadership to fight the
national epidemic of diabetes within the ADA," states
MacDonald. "The opportunity for Medifast to provide
nutritional therapy to reduce diabetes, especially in the
African-American and Hispanic communities of our nation,
is enormous."
Medifast Plus for Diabetics was developed to reduce the
incidence of Type II diabetes in the U.S. Recent clinical
studies at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public
Health have helped put Medifast in a leadership position
for providing nutritional intervention products to combat
this dreadful disease state.
Preliminary Results from clinical studies at the Johns
Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health included:
-- After 34 weeks the study showed that those on the
Medifast Diet for
Diabetics lost twice as much weight compared to those
following basic
nutrition recommendations from the American Diabetes
Association
(ADA).
-- Those on the Medifast Diet for Diabetics program lost
an average of
16 pounds compared to the ADA diet group that lost an
average of
8 pounds.
-- Two-Thirds of those on the Medifast program lost at
least 5% of their
weight, which is a standard measure of the Food and Drug
Administration's (FDA) threshold to indicate clinically
significant
weight loss, versus one-quarter of those on the ADA diet.
-- The researchers randomized two groups of Type II
diabetics. One group
was given the Medifast Plus for Diabetics defined-formula
meal
replacement diet of soups, oatmeal, bars and a variety of
shakes. The
other group was asked to follow a diet based on the ADA
nutrition
guidelines, shop for their own food and manage their own
portions, but
had the same guidance from the doctors, counselors and
dietitians in
the study as the Medifast group.
-- The study found those randomized to the Medifast
program had an
average 7.5% decrease in body fat, a clinically
significant amount.
This release contains forward-looking statements, which
may involve known, and unknown risks, uncertainties and
other factors that may cause Medifast's actual results and
performance in future periods to be materially different
from any future results or performance suggested by these
statements. Medifast cautions investors not to place undue
reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only
to management's expectation on this date.
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