Health officials yesterday said misleading advertisements for cosmetics, drugs and foodstuffs constituted about 10 percent of all advertisements, with most of them inappropriately claiming health benefits, such as stronger bones and weight loss.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that in the three-month period between July and last month, 3,693 TV and radio commercials were monitored, and 355 of them violated the Act Governing Food Sanitation (食品衛生管理法).
Of those, 285 advertised foodstuffs, while 24 commercials were for cosmetics, said Chi Jo-feng (祁若鳳), chief of the administration’s Center for Consumer Protection.
Most of the violators exaggerated the products’ effects and misled consumers into believing that consumption of the product would strengthen their bones and muscles, help them lose weight or aid their liver and kidneys in ridding the body of toxins, she said.
The misleading commercials advertised a wide range of products, from oyster to fish-scale extracts and a variety of pills and capsules.
Chi said health officials are considering amending the Act Governing Food Sanitation by raising the maximum fines to NT$600,000 (US$19,400) to NT$3 million, a big jump from the current NT$30,000 to NT$2 million.
This was necessary because certain businesses were repeat violators, knowing their revenues would more than cover the fines, health officials said, adding that to encourage businesses to obey regulations, the fines had to be high enough to act as a deterrent.
More than 7,800 fines has been issued to companies between January and August, totalling about NT$200 million, Chi said.
The FDA said consumers should be wary of ads touting benefits that appear too good to be true.
When encountering such products, Chi said it was important to remember the “five don’ts”: Don’t believe, don’t listen, don’t buy, don’t eat and don’t recommend.
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