Survey: Most Americans Want to Drop Pounds to Look Better for Swimsuit Season
Monday April 17, 5:00 am ET

Use the New Slim-Fast Optima Shake to Control Your Hunger, Get Ready for Summer and Win a Trip for Four!

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., April 17 /PRNewswire/ -- More than half of all Americans (56%) would like to lose a few pounds to look better this summer, with almost half (48%) wishing to lose 10 pounds or more, a new survey by International Communications Research (ICR) shows. Moreover, when asked why they diet, being healthy trumped looking healthy by 60% to 3% as the main motivation. Today, as an extra incentive for Americans navigating the rough seas of weight loss before summer, Slim-Fast is launching the "Time 4 The Beach Sweepstakes." Entrants can win a four day, three night trip for four people to a beach destination four hours away from their hometown, plus $500 for a shopping spree. The wordplay on the number "4" in the name comes from the newly reformulated Slim-Fast shake, designed to control hunger for up to four hours.

"As summer approaches, most people who would like to lose some weight grow particularly concerned about how they will look in a bathing suit," says Pat Groziak certified nutritionist and Medical Marketing Director for Slim-Fast, "But we're also glad to see the survey finds that dieters are actually motivated by health reasons more than vanity by almost a six-to-one margin. Our sweepstakes is yet another tool for losing weight in time for the beach to both look good and feel healthy."

Indeed, controlling hunger is key to losing weight. A survey released earlier this year from TSC, a division of Yankelovich, reports that at any one time almost 2/3rds of Americans are on a diet. Moreover, the survey revealed a majority (53%) of Americans cheat on their diet because they're hungry; in fact, almost one in three dieters (31%) feel that they're starving themselves while on a diet. Slim-Fast has addressed hunger control head-on by delivering a new food technology that has been developed to work with the body's natural ability to signal satiety and control hunger for up to four hours.

Slim-Fast's innovation is based on new research, conducted over the last four years, on how someone can feel full longer to help manage cravings and hunger between meals. This new innovation from Slim-Fast was just launched February and is designed to control hunger longer than the previous product formulation calorie for calorie versus regular Slim-Fast. It uses a unique blend of common food ingredients in a great tasting shake with a nutritionally balanced formula under 200 calories. It's the first of its kind as a new option for weight loss, and the first real food product on the market to make hunger control claims both in advertising and on the label.

 How it works:

 -- Slim Fast has been studying the "ileal brake principle" -- when fat

 reaches the lower part of the intestines, or ileum, it sets in motion a

 cascade of hormones that send fullness signals" to the brain (much the

 same way that a heavy meal signals you to stop eating). The

 reformulated Slim-Fast is intended to help trigger this effect

 naturally, with a healthier, lower calorie product.

 -- The product is designed to tide people over through hunger spells,

 reducing temptation and controlling appetite, through natural means,

 with real food. The result: dieters stay full for up to four hours on

 just 190 calories, far fewer calories than most meals and many snacks.

 -- Ultimately, the key discovery is that delivering just a little fat to

 the right place in the body can have a big effect in making dieters

 feel full.

 -- The second most important development is the patent pending technology

 that makes this delivery possible.

Slim-Fast is also committed to providing a depth of consumer motivation and support for dieters to help them navigate the rough waters of weight loss. To enter the sweepstakes and for official rules, consumers can go to http://www.time4thebeach.com. Enter and win one trip for four (you and three guests) to popular beach vacation destination and a $500 shopping spree! Additionally, consumers can go to http://www.slim-fast.com for all the tools and support needed to succeed, or call in for FREE ongoing 24/7 support through our 1800 number (1-800-SLIM-FAST) where consumers have access to experienced weight counselors, dieticians and coaching. On the Web-site, consumers can also find The Slim-Fast Guide to Weight Loss Success. Written by weight loss experts, the book features useful dieting tips from successful Slim-Fast dieters and reinforces the importance of tracking one's success with a food and activity tracker.

About Slim-Fast Foods Company

Slim-Fast, a business unit of Unilever, offers delicious and balanced nutritional products, meal planning and exercise advice to aid in weight loss and weight maintenance, which can result in improved health. The Slim-Fast product line includes an affordable range of Shakes, Powders, Meal Bars, Snack Bars, Breakfast Bars and Muffin Bars that are available in retail outlets nationwide. Visit slim-fast.com or call 1 800 SLIMFAST for more information.

About Unilever

Unilever (NYSE: UL - News, UN - News), one of the world's largest consumer products companies, aims to add vitality to life by meeting everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care. Each day, around the world, consumers make 150 million decisions to purchase Unilever products. The company has a portfolio of brands that make people feel good, look good and get more out of life.

In the United States these brands include recognized names such as: Axe, "all," Ben & Jerry's, Bertolli, Breyers, Caress, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, Eternity by Calvin Klein, Hellmann's, Lipton, Knorr, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Snuggle, Suave and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of Unilever. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever in the United States employs more than 15,000 people in 74 office and manufacturing sites in 24 states and Puerto Rico - generating approximately $11 billion in sales. For more information visit http://www.unilever.com.

Source: Slim-Fast