Note: This advice is given by the CAP Executive about non-broadcast advertising. It does not constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the Advertising Standards Authority.
Although the menopause is not an adverse medical condition, claims to treat the symptoms of the menopause (for example hot flushes, night sweats, fatigue, mood swings, sleeplessness, loss of libido, headaches, bloating and migraines) are almost certainly going to be medicinal and should be checked by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as to whether they are likely to need a medicine’s licence, or are eligible to be registered under the Traditional Herbal Medicine scheme. Vitamin or mineral supplements offered as nutritional support for women during and after the menopause are likely to be regarded as foods and therefore subject to the Food Labelling Regulations, which prohibit the use of medicinal claims. The MHRA can give advice on whether the ingredients (such as Red Clover or Black Cohosh) that are commonly included in products for menopausal women are medicinal. (Rodale Books, 7 July 2004)
Vitamins and mineral products are covered by rules 15.1.1 and 15.7-15.9 of the CAP Code, and states “Only Nutrition Claims listed in the Annex of EC Regulation 1924/2006 on Nutrition and Health Claims Made on Foods may be used in marketing communications".
Rule 15.8 states that “Marketers must not state or imply that a balanced or varied diet cannot provide appropriate quantities of nutrients in general. Individuals should not be encouraged to swap a healthy diet for supplementation”. Rule 12.1 also requires marketers to hold robust scientific evidence to support claims made for their products. (Vitabiotics, June 2007).
Various products brought to the Copy Advice team’s attention claim to have benefits for menopausal women due to its phyto-oestrogen* content. CAP understands that over 1,000 phyto-oestrogens have been identified and the effect could depend on which ones are in the product. When assessing ads for ‘food supplements’ that comprise ingredients other than vitamins and minerals, the Copy Advice team will normally ask for a list of ingredients and will seek evidence that the product will help menopausal women; it has not yet accepted that any of those ‘food supplements’ will. Marketers should bear in mind that the evidence on phyto-estrogens seems to be inconclusive; both the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Bandolier fall short of accepting that the evidence for phyto-estrogens is convincing. Marketers should therefore hold evidence that their ‘food supplement’ benefits women going through the menopause and should avoid claims that their product can treat its symptoms.
Marketers should bear in mind that they can fall foul of the Code (and the law) if their product’s name implies an unproven efficacy or makes a medicinal claim. The MHRA, for example, considered that the name of Hot Flashex was an implied medicinal claim that the product could treat one of the adverse symptoms associated with the menopause. See ‘Claims in Names’.
To date, CAP does not accept that magnets have a beneficial effect on the menopause or its symptoms. See ‘Magnets’
*Phyto-oestrogens, as defined by the FSA, occur naturally in a wide variety of edible plants including soya. The chemical structure of the phytoestrogens closely resembles that of the human sex hormone oestradiol and, as a result, they can mimic or block the action of the human hormone although they are generally much less potent.
Last modified : 05 August 2010