Ayds Reducing Plan Candy () was an appetite-suppressant candy introduced around 1940 in the United States.

Flavors

Ayds was available in

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

, chocolate mint,

butterscotch Butterscotch is a type of confection whose primary ingredients are brown sugar and butter. Some recipes include corn syrup, cream, vanilla, and salt. The earliest known recipes, in mid-19th century Yorkshire, used treacle (molasses) in plac ...

, and

caramel Caramel ( or ) is a range of food ingredients made by heating sugars to high temperatures. It is used as a flavoring in puddings and desserts, as a filling in bonbons or candy bars, as a topping for ice cream and custard, and as a colorant ...

flavors, and later a

peanut butter Peanut butter is a food Paste (food), paste or Spread (food), spread made from Grinding (abrasive cutting), ground, dry roasting, dry-roasted peanuts. It commonly contains additional ingredients that modify the taste or texture, such as salt, ...

flavor was introduced. The original packaging used the phrase "Ayds Reducing Plan vitamin and mineral Candy"; a later version used the phrase "appetite suppressant candy". The active ingredient was originally

benzocaine Benzocaine, sold under the brand name Orajel amongst others, is a local anesthetic, belonging to the amino ester drug class, commonly used as a topical painkiller or in cough drops. It is the active ingredient in many over-the-counter ...

, presumably to reduce the sense of

taste The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste. Taste is the perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth biochemistry, reacts chemically with taste receptor cells l ...

to reduce eating, later changed in the candy (as reported by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'') to

phenylpropanolamine Phenylpropanolamine (PPA), sold under many brand names, is a sympathomimetic agent used as a decongestant and appetite suppressant. It was once common in prescription and over-the-counter cough and cold preparations. The medication is taken ...

History

The product was introduced by the Carlay Company of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. In 1944, the U.S.

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...

objected to the claim that the product could cause the user to "lose up to 10 pounds in 5 days, without dieting or exercising". A U.S. trademark was registered in 1946 claiming its first use in commerce was in 1937. Carlay was eventually sold on to

Purex PUREX (plutonium uranium reduction extraction) is a chemical method used to purify fuel for nuclear reactors or nuclear weapons. It is based on liquid–liquid extraction ion-exchange. PUREX is the '' de facto'' standard aqueous nuclear reproc ...

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

and his wife

Dolores Hope Dolores Hope, Order of St. Gregory the Great, DC*SG (née DeFina; May 27, 1909 – September 19, 2011) was an American singer, entertainer, philanthropist, and wife of American actor and comedian Bob Hope. Early life and career Dolores L. DeFi ...

Tyrone Power Tyrone Edmund Power III (May 5, 1914 – November 15, 1958) was an American actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include ''Jesse James (193 ...

and his wife Linda Christian, promoted Ayds. In 1981, Purex sold the rights to the Ayds name to Jeffrey Martin Inc. In 1987, Jeffrey Martin, Inc. and its product line (including Ayds Appetite Suppressant and Compoz Sleep Aid) were acquired by the Dep Corporation (sometimes written DEP). By the mid-1980s, public awareness of

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

brought notoriety to the brand due to the phonetic similarity of names and the fact that the disease caused immense weight loss (

cachexia Cachexia () is a syndrome that happens when people have certain illnesses, causing muscle loss that cannot be fully reversed with improved nutrition. It is most common in diseases like cancer, Heart failure, congestive heart failure, chronic o ...

) in patients. In a September 1985 newspaper interview titled "AIDS has aided Ayds", the president of Ayds' manufacturing company stated that sales had actually increased as a result of the connection, and that "people who suffer from that disease (AIDS) are not the same people who are trying to lose weight". Another executive was quoted in early 1986: "The product has been around for 45 years. Let the disease change its name." Ayds announced it was seeking a new name in 1988, as sales had fallen by as much as 50%. The first rebrand debuted in the UK. "Slim" was appended to Ayds to create a new name, "Aydslim." Marketing strategists quickly criticized the choice since it still contained the name of a disease. Sales did not improve despite new flavors (apple and black currant), advertising, renaming efforts, and a subsequent US-focused campaign as "Diet Ayds" was unsuccessful.

References

{{HIV and AIDS

External links

Time magazine: Ayds, Not AIDS
(June 1983)
Ayds Weight-Loss Candy, Status: Real – Museum of Hoaxes

Photo
Brand name confectionery Brand name diet products Products introduced in 1937 Mass media portrayals of HIV/AIDS