Health and Beauty

Advertisement:
The advertising accompanied by the picture of two body joints offered the following information:

“Finitro
Smooth painless joints
End to joint pain
After two weeks you will experience less pain”

The complainant considered that the advertisers were playing on the sensitivities of people in great pain and discomfort. He said the advertising included claims such as a cure for osteoarthritis and he pointed out that according to medical opinion there was no such cure. He also said that complaints in relation to similar advertising by the same advertiser had been upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the U.K.

The advertisers failed to respond to the complaint.

Complaint Upheld.

The Complaints Committee considered the detail of the complaint and expressed their concerns at the advertisers’ failure to respond in the matter. They reminded them that there was an onus on all advertisers to demonstrate that their advertising was in conformity with the Code. In the absence of the advertisers’ response the Committee upheld the complaint under Section 2.7 of the Code.

Action Required:
The advertisement should not run in its current form again.