On Thu, 17 Jul 2008 23:40:20 +0100, "Trent SC"
wrote:

I was wondering where the law stands on advertisers, manufacturers and
promoters who make medical claims for foods and household goods such as
shampoos (typically along the lines of "cures cancer", "reverses baldness",
etc).

Are they merely transgressing advertising codes of conduct, or are there
specific laws in place that prevent, say, all but authorised, tested and
peer-reviewed medicines from attracting this sort of promotion?

It is illegal to claim medical benefits from the use of anything which
does not have a product licence under the Medicines Act. But weasel
words which produce the same impression are legal if carefully
drafted, as in the case of all the useless rubish marketed as "food
supplements".

Anyone using either of the wordings you quote would find themselves in
court pretty rapidly.

--
Don Aitken
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