Diet & health
Wondering whether the plan you choose will actually help, and whether the company will stand behind what it sells when you need it to. Those questions matter most here.
Diet & health companies
424 companies
About Diet & health
Diet & health covers the products and services people use to change how they eat, manage their weight, support their wellbeing and stay active. It takes in dietary advice from registered dietitians and nutritionists, weight loss programmes delivered through apps, meal plans and clinics, vitamin and supplement ranges sold online and in pharmacies, and fitness coaching in gyms, studios and at home.
The providers range from independent practitioners and small online brands to large high street pharmacy chains and national fitness operators. Most reach customers through websites, mobile apps, social media and subscription models, with in-person clinics and gyms serving local markets. Dietitians are regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council, while nutritionists may join the Association for Nutrition's Register of Nutritionists, and the Advertising Standards Authority and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency police health claims and the marketing of supplements in the United Kingdom.
The market is shaped by a mix of professional registration, product regulation and consumer law, which together set the boundaries for what companies can claim and how they must treat their customers. Supplements sit under food law enforced by the Food Standards Agency, while fitness instructors are commonly accredited through bodies such as the Register of Exercise Professionals. The result is a patchwork in which some services are tightly controlled and others rely heavily on the honesty of their own marketing.
Questions about Diet & health
How do I know if a diet or health company is legitimate?
Check that the company gives its full legal name, a registered business address and company registration number, which you can verify on Companies House at gov.uk. Legitimate firms also state who regulates them, whether that is the Advertising Standards Authority for marketing claims, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for medicines and supplements, or a recognised professional body for qualified practitioners.
What should I compare before choosing a weight loss or nutrition service?
Compare what the service actually provides, whether that is a meal plan, coaching, or a product, and whether a qualified dietitian or registered nutritionist is involved, which you can check on the Association of UK Dietitians or the Association for Nutrition registers. Look at the total cost over the length of the contract, the cancellation terms, and whether the claimed results are backed by evidence rather than before-and-after photos alone.
Do vitamin and supplement products have to be safe in the UK?
Food supplements sold in the UK must comply with the Food Supplements (England) Regulations 2003 and related rules, and the Food Standards Agency and local trading standards teams enforce them. Products making medicinal claims, such as treating a condition, fall under the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, so you can report concerns to the MHRA through its Yellow Card scheme.
How do I cancel a subscription to a diet or fitness service?
Read the terms before you sign up, because you have the right to cancel an online contract under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 within 14 days of receiving goods or of agreeing to a service, though that cooling-off period can be lost once a service has begun with your agreement. Send written notice to the address or email the company specifies, keep a copy, and check your bank statements afterwards to confirm no further payments are taken.
Can I get a refund if a product or service does not work for me?
Goods must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, so faulty or misdescribed products can be rejected within 30 days for a full refund. For services, the Act requires reasonable care and skill, and you can ask for a repeat of the service, a price reduction or a refund if it is not fixed. Keep receipts, screenshots of the advertised claims and all messages with the company.
How long does delivery take for supplements and meal plans?
The delivery timescale should be stated clearly at checkout, and under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 the trader must dispatch goods by the date given or within 30 days if no date is set. If goods arrive late or not at all, you can cancel the order and claim a refund if the delay is significant, and you can contact the company in writing to set a new deadline.
What should I do if I have a complaint about a diet or health company?
Raise the complaint directly with the company in writing, describing what happened, what you want as a remedy and a reasonable deadline for a response. If the company does not resolve it, check whether it belongs to an approved alternative dispute resolution scheme, such as the ADR scheme listed on the Chartered Trading Standards Institute website, or refer the matter to the Citizens Advice consumer service or your local trading standards office.
Where can I report misleading health or weight loss advertising in the UK?
Report misleading adverts to the Advertising Standards Authority, which enforces the UK Code of Non-broadcast and Broadcast Advertising and can require claims to be withdrawn. Claims that breach consumer protection law can also be reported to the Competition and Markets Authority or your local trading standards team, and the Citizens Advice consumer helpline can advise you on which body to contact.
Are reviews of diet and fitness companies reliable?
Judge reviews by checking whether they describe a specific experience with dates, the product or service used, and both positive and negative points, since the Competition and Markets Authority has made clear that fake or incentivised reviews breach consumer protection law under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. Be wary of a cluster of very similar praise posted within a short period, and give more weight to reviews that explain how long the person used the service and whether they had to make a complaint.
Do I need a qualification to offer personal training or nutrition advice?
No law in the UK requires a qualification to call yourself a personal trainer or nutrition coach, but a practitioner should hold a recognised qualification and carry professional indemnity insurance. You can check that a trainer holds a Register of Exercise Professionals listing or that a nutritionist is on the Association for Nutrition register, and only a registered dietitian with the Health and Care Professions Council can use the title dietitian.
Can a company use my health information for marketing?
Health information is special category data under the UK General Data Protection Regulation, so a company needs your explicit consent to process it for marketing and must explain how it will use it. You can withdraw consent at any time, ask for your data to be deleted or request a copy under a subject access request, and you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office if the company does not respond properly.
What should I check before signing up for a long-term contract?
Check the minimum term, the notice period, whether the contract renews automatically and what fees apply if you leave early. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the unfair terms rules in the Consumer Rights Act Part 2, terms that are unfair and not transparent can be challenged, so you can ask the company to explain any clause you do not understand before you agree to it.