Corporations have mastered the art of convincing us to buy things we don’t actually need. Backed by billions in marketing research, they know exactly how to push our buttons — from subtle tricks to blatant manipulation. Remember when mall stores pumped perfume into the air just to lure customers inside because research said it worked? That’s just one example of how far companies will go. And while some of these tactics lead to empty promises, others push products that are not only a waste of money but downright harmful. Here are three of the worst offenders:

1. Diet Pills

First of all: you do not need to be thin to be valuable, lovable, or respected. The “perfect body” is a lie sold to us by society to control women and profit off insecurity. And no matter what your body looks like, someone will always find something to criticize. So forget trying to have the perfect body and just be you.

Second, with everything going on in this country — rising authoritarianism, political corruption, and attacks on child protection laws — worrying about your weight should not top the list of priorities society pressures you to obsess over.

Third, diet pills don’t even work. They’re not FDA-regulated, so companies can make wild claims about magical results and stuff whatever ingredients they want into those capsules. Some are outright dangerous. At best, they might create a short-term drop in weight that quickly comes back. At worst, they can cause real harm.

The cruelest part? They prey on people who are already healthy but feel “not enough” by societal standards, or on people who are desperate after trying everything else. Or they’re targeted towards people who want a quick fix. It’s exploitation, plain and simple.

What to do instead:

You don’t need a “fix” for your body. But if you’re truly concerned about health or motivation, therapy is often far more effective. Becoming healthy requires life long changes in your behavior and habits. Behavioral therapy can help build those sustainable habits, help change your mindset to build those habits, and provide a proper diagnosis (like ADHD, which can affect motivation) to unlock solutions tailored to you.

Exception:

The only case where medication makes sense is if you’re severely obese and a doctor prescribes an FDA-approved weight-loss medication. But those are not diet pills. They’re regulated medicine.

2. Downy Unstopables

According to Downy, these “in-wash scent boosters” make your laundry smell good for up to 12 weeks. Depending on where you buy them from, they cost $11–$20 a bottle, which is outrageous for something so utterly pointless.

Their advertising literally says: “Every embrace is like a hug for the nose. You’ll smell like you have it together.” Translation: if your clothes reek of synthetic chemicals, people will think you’ve got your life in order.

What kind of nonsense advertising bullshit is that? That’s not how it works, Downy.

Here’s the reality:

• Odor fatigue (a.k.a. noseblindness): Odor fatigue is the “temporary, normal inability to distinguish a particular odor after a prolonged exposure.” (Wikipedia) Odor fatigue is a human adaptation to prevent us from sensory overload. Meaning probably within less than an hour after putting on the clothing item scented with Downy, you won’t even notice the smell anymore. So what’s the point exactly?
• No one cares what your clothes smell like: Aside from the cursory, ‘oh, your clothes smell nice,’ I highly doubt anyone gives it more than a passing thought — let alone thinks, ‘that person must have their life together because their clothes artificially smell good!’ No one thinks about other people that much. And no one defines ‘having it together’ as having nice-smelling clothes, because that is ridiculous.
• Synthetic mystery ingredients: Their beads contain polyethylene glycol, dyes, and a catch-all “fragrance” label that could include any combination of a list of more than 50 chemicals, some of which are labeled as known allergens under California and EU law. But those three ingredients alone do not make them bead-shaped. So what does? Downy won’t say.
• Masking, not solving: If your clothes smell bad, Unstopables just cover it up. They don’t actually eliminate odor.

What to do instead:

Instead of buying a completely worthless product, use dryer balls. Dryer balls also replace dryer sheets, which are another completely useless product. If you really want your clothes to smell nice, then just add a few drops of essential oil to the dryer ball for a reusable, cheaper alternative.

If odors are the problem, tackle them at the source with hydrogen peroxide. It breaks down odor-causing bacteria, removes stains, brightens whites, and costs a fraction of what Unstopables do. Baking soda is another effective option — just add half a cup to your wash load to neutralize acidic compounds that cause odors and freshen your laundry. Chances are you already have baking soda in your kitchen, and it’s considerably cheaper than Unstopables.

Exception:

None. This product has no reason to exist.

3. Paper Towels

Paper towels are a modern scam. Humans survived for thousands of years without them, and you can too.

Invented in 1907 by Scott Paper Company as “Sani-Towels,” because surprise, surprise the paper company wanted to sell more paper, they became a kitchen “necessity” in 1931 thanks to advertising. Today, they’re overpriced (and continuously increasing in price), wasteful, and terrible for the environment.

Yes, they’re convenient. But convenience doesn’t equal necessity.

What to use instead:

Rags are your best friend. Growing up as a kid, we always had a pile of rags. Just like everyone has a bag full of plastic bags, I’m willing to bet most American homes also have a pile of rags. It was just old towels that were falling apart, old dish clothes, and old hand towels that could be literally used for anything, like cleaning up spills, cleaning the cars, washing the dogs, etc. The best thing about rags is that if they become too dirty or if you use them to pick up something that you don’t want to wash, you can just throw them away because they’ve already had a long life.

But don’t worry if you don’t have an old pile of rags. You can buy kitchen towels or dish clothes that will work just as well if not better than any paper towel. And the best thing is you only have to buy them once and they’ll last for years or even decades.

Exception:

Cleaning up biohazards you’d rather throw away than wash. But even then, it’s optional. For example, I had a German Shepherd. He passed away a few years ago, but when he was alive he a lot of stomach issues. Because of his issues, he often had diarrhea. In those cases, I would absolutely use a paper towel because I did not want to rinse and then wash poop-covered rags. But that’s an occasional exception, not an everyday need. And it’s also not a necessity. I could have cleaned up with a rag. I chose not to, but I could have done it.

And unlike what Bounty likes to advertise, having Bounty quicker picker upper isn’t going to save your electronics from spills. There’s literally no rush to pick up most spills, unless someone is being a jerk about it. It’d be much smarter to first pick up your electronic device and move it, then clean up the spill.

According to Wikipedia, paper towels are popular primarily among people who have disposable income. Well, most Americans don’t have disposable income anymore thanks to the incompetence and cruelty of the GOP. So if it’s not in the budget, you should absolutely skip buying paper towels and just grab a rag instead.

Final Thought

These products exist for one reason: to make corporations money, not to make your life better. Diet pills prey on insecurity, Unstopables sell you fake confidence, and paper towels convince you they’re more convenient and hygienic than the alternatives and are worth destroying the planet.

You don’t need them. And the less we buy, the less power corporations have to profit from our insecurities, our wallets, and our world.