Council for Responsible Nutrition Database Compiles NAD False Advertising Cases

In an effort to help dietary supplement companies avoid making misleading, unsubstantiated, or deceptive advertising claims, dietary supplement industry association the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN; Washington, DC) has created a free online database of past advertising cases investigated by the National Advertising Division (NAD).

As part of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, NAD is the investigative unit through which the advertising industry self-regulates. NAD may investigate advertising claims that it finds questionable and then advise companies on the changes they can make so that claims are truthful and not misleading. If a company fails to make changes, NAD may recommend the case to the Federal Trade Commission, which could then take regulatory action.

CRN’s new database is free, searchable, and contains records of the decisions of NAD cases dating back to 2007, which is when NAD’s Dietary Supplement Advertising Review Program began. CRN initiated the program together with the NAD, and helps to fund it, in an effort to uncover deceptive claims being made in the dietary supplements industry.

“This searchable database provides a snapshot of the kinds of claims that are being challenged,” says Rend Al-Mondhiry, CRN regulatory counsel. “We believe that savvy marketers will view this compilation as a service to the industry, using it as a proactive starting point to compare their own advertising claims with those that have raised red flags, and adjust their claims accordingly before drawing the attention of the NAD, or possibly the Federal Trade Commission.”

“Consumers need to know they can trust our industry’s advertising claims, and we all have an important role to play in making that possible,” adds CRN president and CEO Steve Mister.