WHO IS ATIDA KARR, M.D.?

A Woman Medical Maverick
Advocate Of Products Without Side Effects

In 1973, Dr. Karr introduced a new concept for acne treatment: moisturizing the skin instead of drying it. She developed a hypoallergenic cleanser/moisturizer that caused no adverse side effects and called it Acne-Statin (meaning acne arresting). Acne-Statin is a proven hypoallergenic, non-irritating, non-drying, non-peeling, non-scaling, odorless, greaseless, water soluble, gentle, light lotion that clears and heals acne blemishes. It works on every skin type, even sensitive skin. It works on simple acne breakouts as well as on most people with stubborn acne of long duration that is resistant to conventional therapy prescribed by dermatologists. It also does not cause sun sensitivity.

Prior to entering medical school, Dr. Karr had extensive scientific training, including five years as a cancer researcher (on an NIH grant) while working towards a Ph.D. in cellular physiology and biochemistry at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. She graduated from Hahnemann University Medical School (Philadelphia, PA), a member of a class consisting of 100 males and only four females. Dr. Karr interned at Santa Monica Hospital in California, had part residency at UCLA, and passed the California State Medical Board examinations for a California medical license. She also raised three children, one of whom graduated from Yale Medical School.

Being a visionary, she opened a private practice in preventative medicine in Beverly Hills, California in 1973; before preventative medicine was recognized as a necessity - cholesterol was not a household word and insurance companies would not even pay for services dealing with the prevention of chronic diseases! Dr. Karr focused mostly on prevention of factors leading to cardiac diseases in order to prevent morbidity and early mortality. She also educated patients on how to care for themselves. Because of her compassion, she did not charge patients who could not afford to pay. Dr. Karr says, “I did not go to medical school to make money, but to save lives.”

Many diseases can be prevented, including iatrogenic diseases (caused by medications). Acne, a hereditary, chronic disease of the follicular hair canal, has no cure, but can be controlled. Most products on the market (over-the-counter and prescription) have side effects, some of which are severe and affect the whole body. Some even cause birth defects in babies born to women taking these medications during pregnancy.

Some people are resistant to conventional prescribed acne medications or cannot tolerate their side effects. Benzoyl peroxide and Retin-A cause irritation and Retin-A also causes sun-sensitivity, which can prevent youngsters from participating in outdoor sports. Retin-A is also potentially carcinogenic after exposure to the sun’s rays. Oral medications such as tetracycline can cause gastrointestinal problems and candida (yeast infections). Accutane causes liver toxicity, edema and swelling of the brain and optic nerve, gastrointestinal problems, hair loss, heart problems, fusion of vertebral bones and severe, grotesque birth defects if taken during the first trimester of pregnancy.

Desperate to solve her own acne problem and that of children, Dr. Karr, using herself as a guinea pig, developed a unique, water-soluble cleanser/moisturizer lotion in 1972. In 1974, Dr. Karr performed clinical studies with Acne-Statin on her patients who, like herself, were resistant to other acne products or had sensitive skin. She trademarked her product as Acne-Statin in 1975.

In 1976, Dr. Karr formed a company and joint-ventured with a direct marketing and advertising company. In 1977, the venture started direct marketing Acne-Statin on a national level via a two-minute television commercial hosted by entertainer/singer Pat Boone and his daughter Debbie. Pat Boone volunteered to do the commercial after his daughters used Acne-Statin and it cleared up their skin. The TV ad ran for six months and sporadic magazine ads for another six months.

Public response was phenomenal. Acne sufferers who could not tolerate the side effects of anti-acne medications or were resistant to them embraced Acne-Statin and sent thousands of unsolicited letters to Dr. Karr thanking her for giving them clear, soft, moist, non-scaly skin. Even those with very sensitive skin could tolerate Acne-Statin and many called it a “miracle.” One called Dr. Karr “an angel sent from heaven to help people like us.” Another wrote, “If I could, I would nominate you for sainthood.”

Approximately one million 4 oz. bottles of Acne-Statin were sold that first year and many Acne-Statin customers continuously reordered the product, saying they “couldn’t live without it.” Customers realized that Acne-Statin was a revolutionary product. They had finally found something that worked and cleared up their skin without irritating it.

For decades the anti-acne market (OTC and prescribed medications) was monopolized by drying, peeling, irritating agents. Dr. Karr’s product was 180 degrees opposite from the prevailing products on the market. By providing the public with a new product that did not dry, irritate, or peel, but on the contrary, moisturized the skin and kept it soft, moist, and smooth, Dr. Karr went against the conventional anti-acne market that promoted drying and peeling agents in their products. Acne-Statin caused quite a stir in the dermatological community and amongst the pharmaceutical companies that produced the products that dermatologists prescribed.

Dr. Karr’s competitors realized that they were losing patients and customers and looked at Acne-Statin as a potentially large competitor that could take their market share - so they decided to do something about it.

Acne-Statin’s competitors wanted to prevent Dr. Karr from advertising Acne-Statin, a move that was not in the public’s best interest. Five well-known dermatologists complained to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), a government agency in charge of monitoring advertising, alleging that Acne-Statin ads were false and misleading. They also volunteered to be “consultants” on the FTC’s Acne-Statin case. Subsequently, the FTC sent Dr. Karr a subpoena in which one of the complaints was that “Acne-Statin was in competition with the dermatological community and pharmaceutical companies” (that manufactured the products they prescribed). Dr. Karr responded, “Since when is it a sin to compete in a free-market society, especially if it’s in the public’s best interest?” When Dr. Karr asked the FTC prosecutor who had complained, his answer was, “The dermatologists.”

Dr. Karr single handedly had to fight five very influential dermatologists with monetary connections to a large pharmaceutical company with vested interest (it manufactured the competing products). These dermatologists and the large drug company enlisted the help of government bureaucrats from the FTC to keep Dr. Karr from advertising that the product worked. This ensured that the public would not have the opportunity to hear about the benefits of Acne-Statin and would not be able to try it and find out for themselves the benefits that a million customers had prior to the FTC’s interference.

To add insult to injury, the competitors used the press to disseminate negative, adverse and false publicity about Acne-Statin and Pat Boone, the spokesperson in the Acne-Statin ad. Dr. Karr turned medical maverick because she believed (and still does) that the public had the right to hear of alternative products that do not contain drying and peeling agents and be able to hear about non-abrasive, non-peeling, non-irritating products that their skin could tolerate.

For decades, 90% of OTC anti-acne products contained sulphur, a drying and peeling agent. In 1972, Retin-A, a prescribed topical anti-acne product, was advertised as a strong irritant and a “superior” exfolliant. Many people couldn’t tolerate it and gave up on ever having clear skin and became prisoners in their own home.

In 1981, Dr. Karr received the results of two double-blind clinical studies (which were required by the FTC) that were performed by two independent dermatologists of national acclaim. In addition, one clinical study was done on acne resistant to conventional therapy. The results were excellent. These clinical studies substantiated Acne-Statin’s efficacy, safety and hypoallergenicity. They also validated Acne-Statin customers’ claims and experiences detailed in the thousands of unsolicited letters of gratitude that poured in with the reorders. The public “study” was simple - they just looked in the mirror and counted their blessings. After all, acne is a visible disease.

Finally in 1991, Dr. Karr produced her own 30-minute TV informercial featuring volunteer Acne-Statin customers’ live testimonials. These unscripted and unrehearsed testimonials from the customers themselves reflected honesty, sincerity, and integrity.

Once again, public response was overwhelming and was reflected in the orders and repeat orders. Parents wrote to Dr. Karr that their children who had quit school went back to school and some adult customers wrote that they returned to work with renewed self-esteem. They were finally free of physical and emotional pain after years of suffering through not only acne, but the side effects of acne medications that did not work for them. Customers wrote of their regrets: “I wish I had heard about Acne-Statin ten years ago.” They wrote about their joy: “You gave me my life back!” One wrote, “Acne-Statin is a gift from God! Nothing in this world works like that amazing cream. Please rush me another kit!”

For the past twenty-five years, Dr. Karr has been president and CEO of Physician’s Physiological Research Laboratories, Inc. (PPRL, Inc.) and since 1989 she has been president and CEO of Eton Derma Laboratories, Inc., the marketing company.

Mfd for P.P.R.L. Inc. Physician's Physiological Research Laboratories Inc. Beverly Hills, CA 90213