Ingredient Studies Don’t Automatically Add Up to a Finished-Product Claim
Ingredient studies may support carefully qualified claims
The National Advertising Division (NAD) recently reviewed claims made by a functional chocolate company. This case helps provide some more context to the question, “Can studies on individual ingredients support claims for a multi-ingredient finished product?”
But of course, with all things, context matters, and research should fit the actual claim. Let’s see what we can learn.
One of the claims challenged in this case was “Cool, calm and collected is one delicious bite away.” As claims go, this may not look particularly high risk, but this case highlights that these commonly used general claims can still require substantiation.
To support this claim, the company relied on studies on the ingredients L-theanine, kanna and saffron. NAD looked at the ingredient research and, for the L-theanine and kanna, determined that the evidence was not a good fit to support the statement.
But, with the saffron, one submitted clinical study appeared to have the same dose of saffron contained in the product and reported statistically significant results on measures including tension, stress and vigor. NAD found that the study had many indicators of reliability and recommended the company modify the claim to make clear that the supported benefit was limited to saffron.
The important distinction is that studies on several ingredients don’t automatically add up to finished product claims substantiation.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that every multi-ingredient supplement claim requires a clinical study on the finished product. A good best practice or takeaway here is that attributing claims to an ingredient (when supported) MAY help better align the claim with the available evidence.
When reviewing substantiation here are some things to keep in mind.
- Is the dose comparable?
- Is the formulation and method of administration relevant?
- Is the study population sufficiently relevant to the people you are marketing to?
- Did the study measure the benefit you are claiming?
- Were the results statistically significant and meaningful to consumers?
- And importantly, are you making a claim about the ingredient, or are consumers likely to understand it as a claim about what the finished product will do? This is the net impression discussion.
Read the NAD case.
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