| U.S. Federal Trade Commission |
FTC News Release, Mar 9, 2006
Dietary Supplement Maker Garden of Life Settles FTC Charges
Claimed Clinical Studies Backed Primal Defense, RM-10, Living Multi, and FYI
An operation that marketed dietary supplements sold at
Whole Foods Market, GNC, the Vitamin Shoppe, and on the
Internet settled Federal Trade Commission charges that they
made deceptive advertising claims about their supplements. The
FTC charged that Garden of Life, Inc., a dietary supplement
company based in West Palm Beach, Florida, and its founder and
owner, Jordan S. Rubin, made unsubstantiated claims that their
supplements treated or cured a variety of ailments, ranging
from colds to cancer, and also made false claims of clinical
proof. The settlement prohibits deceptive claims about the
results of tests or studies and requires claims by the
defendants to be substantiated by competent and reliable
scientific evidence.
The FTC’s complaint targeted claims about four dietary
supplements: Primal Defense, RM-10, Living Multi, and FYI.
According to the complaint, the defendants made
unsubstantiated advertising claims that:
- Primal Defense treats intractable immune disorders,
asthma, irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome,
arthritis, lupus, colds, flu, and Crohn’s disease, and
reduces users’ blood cholesterol levels;
- RM-10 treats cancer, helps lower users’ blood
cholesterol levels, prevents and treats cardiovascular
disease, and treats immune system disorders;
- Living Multi reduces the risk factor for diabetes and
prevents diabetes-related syndromes, reduces the risk of
obesity, and reduces inflammation; and
- FYI (For Your Inflammation) treats and prevents
inflammation, including inflammation caused by arthritis,
inflammatory bowel disease, sports injuries, asthma,
allergies, fibromyalgia, lupus, scleroderma, and other
inflammatory conditions.
The FTC also alleged that the defendants made false claims
that clinical studies prove that:
- Primal Defense reduces users’ blood cholesterol levels
by 25 percent or more; improves users’ energy levels,
memory, and concentration; and mitigates the symptoms of
most patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia stage II;
- RM-10 treats immune system disorders and cancer;
- Living Multi has a proven nutritional formula;
and
- FYI treats rheumatoid arthritis and reduces the effects
of inflammation.
Garden of Life and Jordan Rubin will pay $225,000 in
consumer redress as part of the settlement. If it is found
they misrepresented their financial status, they will be
responsible for the full judgment of more than $47 million –
the total gross sales of the four dietary supplements. The
settlement also prohibits the defendants from making claims
similar to the ones challenged in the FTC’s complaint, unless
they have competent and reliable scientific evidence
substantiating the claims. Furthermore, the settlement
requires the defendants to have such evidence whenever they
make any claim about the health benefits, performance,
efficacy, safety, or side effects of any food, drug, or
dietary supplement, or any program that includes such a
product. The defendants also are prohibited from
misrepresenting the results of any test or study when
marketing such products and programs.
The Commission vote to authorize staff to file the
complaint and stipulated final order was 5-0. The complaint
and stipulated final order were filed in the U.S. District
Court for the Southern District of Florida on March 8,
2006.
NOTE: This stipulated final order is for
settlement purposes only and does not constitute an admission
by the defendant of a law violation. A stipulated final order
requires approval by the court and has the force of law when
signed by the judge.
The text in this article was prepared by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.