Antioxidant claims have joined the list of nutritional marketing categories on the Federal Trade Commission's enforcement radar.

Richard Cleland, assistant director of the commission's Division of Advertising Practices, grouped antioxidants with health claim topics of interest to FTC, alongside omega-3s, probiotics, acai for weight loss and various sources of immunity claims.

"We're not quite sure what to make of" antioxidant claims, Cleland said May 5 at the Consumer Healthcare Products Association's Regulatory & Scientific Conference in Bethesda, Md.

"We're not even quite sure what consumers make of those claims, and whether they really have any meaning" for consumers, he added.

Antioxidants, which include vitamins A, C and E, selenium and lycopene, might help stabilize free radicals generated by cell oxidation in the body.

"A fair number of consumers actually believe that companies couldn't make these claims unless the government had approved them. We need to disabuse them of that." – FTC official Richard Cleland

Supplement and functional food marketing claims for antioxidants are wide-ranging, touching on anti-aging, anticancer, cardiovascular, energy and immunity benefits.

However, "there still remains a lack of direct experimental evidence from randomized trials that antioxidants are beneficial to health, which has led to different recommendations for different populations," according to the International Food Information Council Foundation.

While Cleland noted FTC only is "observing" antioxidant claims at present, a major action or cluster of actions might not be far off, given how readily food and beverage marketers have embraced antioxidants as a buzz word in recent years.

For instance, FTC's expanded settlement order with Kellogg Co. in 2010 stemmed in part from the company's claims that the antioxidant vitamins in Kellogg's Rice Krispies help families "stay healthy" (Also see "Despite FTC's "Timid" Kellogg Action, Rigorous Claims Enforcement Expected" - Pink Sheet, 7 June, 2010.).

FDA also has been active on the antioxidant front, having published guidance in July 2008 to standardize language for antioxidant nutrient content claims.

In August 2010, FDA warned Unilever that claims for its Lipton Green Tea, including "packed with protective flavonoid antioxidants," were noncompliant nutrient content claims and caused the beverage to be misbranded ("FDA warns beverage makers on claims, fortification," "The Tan Sheet" Sept. 13, 2010, In Brief).

Fostering Consumer Skepticism Of Claims

At the CHPA event, Cleland described the challenges FTC faces in attempting to police supplement and food claims proliferating on the Internet.

"We try to focus on those products, the advertising, that is causing the greatest level of consumer injury," he said. "Sometimes we get that right, sometimes perhaps we get it wrong. But that's certainly our intent."

FTC's most recent sweep in the health claims area, involving 10 lawsuits against affiliate marketers of acai products making unsubstantiated weight-loss claims, is a prime example of another priority area for the agency: consumer education (Also see "FTC Continues Acai Crackdown With Blitz Against Affiliate Marketers" - Pink Sheet, 25 April, 2011.).

Cleland said fostering consumer skepticism toward claims along with industry self-regulation – including the Council for Responsible Nutrition's alliance with the National Advertising Division – are essential, as government regulation alone will never suffice.

"The information we have indicates that a fair number of consumers actually believe that companies couldn’t make these claims unless the government had approved them," Cleland said. "We need to disabuse them of that."

By Dan Schiff

Antioxidant Claims Pique FTC Interest As Potential Enforcement Target

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