Based on current medical tenants, we continue to advise our readers to stay away from any company that claims to be able to promote height increases in adults. Unfortunately, many people realize they have been cheated only after their money is gone.

If you feel that you have been cheated by one of these companies, we strongly urge you to file a complaint. One voice will not do much but many will get this problem addressed by the proper authorities. At least one company so far has been shut down and their owners are facing jail time.

For companies in the United States, the best place to start is the State Attorneys General office from which the company operates. Don't send email. You are more likely to get a response if you send a postal letter.

You can also file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Before you contact the BBB, contact the company that sold you the fraudulent product and demand a refund. Then follow up with them about a week later. Be very specific that you want your money refunded. If they do not answer you to your satisfaction, file a complaint. As you go through the "File a Complaint Form", you'll be asked for the address of the company, so the complaint can be forwarded to the local BBB office. They will send a letter to the company. If the company does not answer, the BBB records the complaint as UNANSWERED and files it in their database of companies.

Some companies operate from Canada. If you were scammed by one of them, contact the Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus and look up the office that handles the province from which the company operates. Then contact the appropriate office.

Also, in the United States, the Federal Trade Commission initiated Operation Cure.All:

Please go to Operation Cure.All and click on "File a Complaint" on the bottom of the page.

In 2002 we contacted several government and private agencies asking for a review of these companies. Rather than filing complaints on individual companies, we attempted to address the entire height increase industry. Initial contact was always by formal letter on Short Persons Support letter head to the main office, followed by email or a Web form submission if no response was received. Responses were disappointing. Below is a list of correspondences we have had or attempted.

• Federal Trade Commission

  Date of contact:	3 May 2002
  Address:	CRC-240 600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Washington, D.C. 20580
  Follow-up:	14 July 2002, by Web form submission 19 December 2002, by Web form submission
  Response Received:	20 December 2002
  Response:	... The Commission does not resolve individual complaints. The Commission can, however, act when it sees a pattern of possible violations developing... See Form Letter

• Food and Drug Administration

  Date of Contact:	3 May 2002
  Address:	5600 Fishers Lane Rockville, Maryland 20857
  Response Received:	18 July 2002
  Response (in part):	... A firm is not required to submit to FDA scientific information about product safety or any benefits that the product is represented to have. Consequently, we do not have information about the safety or benefits of most dietary supplements... See letter

• Better Business Bureau

  Date of Contact:	28 June 2002
  Address:	1700 Whitehorse Hamilton Square, Ste. D-5 Trenton, NJ 08690-3596
  Response Received:	6 August 2002
  Response (in part):	[These companies are] not in our serving area, you need to contact... See email

• Human Growth Foundation

  Date of Contact:	28 June 2002
  Address:	997 Glen Cove Ave. Glen Head, N.Y. 11545
  Response Received:	None

• National Fraud Information Center

  Date of Contact:	19 December 2002
  Address:	c/o National Consumers League 1701 K Street, NW, Suite 1200 Washington, DC 20006
  Response Received:	None