Kiwi company backs sport wristband

Andrew Strauss has worn a Power Balance wristband during the Ashes series in Australia. Photo / Getty Images

A New Zealand company which sells wristbands targeted at sportspeople is not worried by a rival product being exposed as a scam in Australia.

Last month the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) exposed Power Balance Australia as misleading customers over claims their wristband increased an athlete's core strength and power by responding to the wearer's "natural energy field".

The ACCC ordered Power Balance Australia to refund all customers as there was "no credible scientific basis for the claims".

England cricket captain Andrew Strauss and teammate Kevin Pietersen have worn Power Balance wristbands during the current Ashes series in Australia while soccer stars David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wallaby James O'Conner and NBA great Shaquille O'Neal have also been linked to the product.

Power Balance has since admitted that their advertising was misleading and that they can't prove the wristbands improve performance.

A statement on the company's Australian website reads:

"In our advertising we stated that Power Balance wristbands improved your strength, balance and flexibility.

"We admit that there is no credible scientific evidence that supports our claims and therefore we engaged in misleading conduct in breach of s52 of the Trade Practices Act 1974.

"If you feel you have been misled by our promotions, we wish to unreservedly apologise and offer a full refund."

New Zealand company EKEN Powerbands produce a similar product but are not worried by the negative publicity from across the Tasman.

EKEN Powerbands is run by Melbourne-based Tauranga brothers Brendan Howell and Peter Howell and their product is endorsed by the New Zealand sevens team and NRL star Billy Slater.

The company are set to announce within the next few weeks a deal with a high profile rugby team within New Zealand.

Diane Howell, mother of Brendan and Peter, is the New Zealand national distributor of EKEN Powerbands and backs her product "100 per cent".

"We don't break any rules or do any false advertising," she said.

"Controversy is good because people start looking at the product. We're not worried about it because we know our product is good. We've crossed the t's and dotted the i's so we're not worried at all.

"It's good publicity for us really, It shows how good our product is because we've followed the rules."

The EKEN Powerbands website explains the wristbands, which cost $89.95, work through four holographic discs which "are programmed, through a proprietary process, with frequencies that are harmonious to the human body. Our bodies respond positively to the bands when we wear them. The technology is based on over 10 years of research in electronics and eastern practices."

The admission by Power Balance Australia that they cannot prove their product works has provided an embarrassing situation for a number of big sporting names who endorse the product.

NBA star O'Neal is quoted on the official Power Balance US website saying:

"I don't really do a lot of testimonials, but this really works! I came across Power Balance when someone did the test on me. That night, while playing for the Phoenix Suns, there were about three of my teammates with the product on and we won that game by 57 points!

"I kept feeling something when I wore the bracelet, so I kept wearing it. When I took it off I went back to normal. I've been wearing the bracelet ever since.... I'm here to tell you it works!"

When Benji Marshall wore a Power Balance wristband in a man of the match performance against the Parramatta Eels last season one NRL player agent contacted The Sunday Telegraph to suggest "they should be banned because it was a form of cheating".