ASA Adjudication on Lifes2good UK Ltd

Ad

A national press ad, for a pain relief device, was headlined with a quote attributed to Wimbledon champion Virginia Wade OBE and said "Discover Pain Ease, the patch that relieves pain - I did and it really works!" The body copy continued with the testimonial and said "...... I find that anti-inflammatory drugs work to a certain extent but not permanently, and I don't like to take too many. This patch is so gentle that I can't even feel it, yet the relief from pain and swelling is astounding". The ad also stated "The Pain Ease Patch, from Lifes2Good, is a unique system that uses low-level micro-electric current to deliver drug-free pain relief directly where you need it. Low level electrical stimulation for pain relief has been used for years by physiotherapists to relieve muscle and skeletal pain". The ad explained in more detail how the device worked and stated that it "gently stimulates the tissue and activates the body's natural healing process, without any side effects". The ad stated the device was recommended for "back pain and sciatica, Arthritis and fibromyalgia .... accelerating [sic] healing process".

Issue

1. A complainant challenged whether the efficacy claims in the ad could be substantiated and whether the device could treat the listed conditions; and

2. The ASA challenged whether references to serious medical conditions such as arthritis were likely to discourage essential treatment.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

1. Lifes2good UK Ltd (Lifes2good) stated that the Pain Ease Patch was rated at 25 microamperes (µA) and provided the summaries of five clinical studies on humans, which tested devices using Microcurrent Therapy (MCT) with a current of either 10 or 25 µA.  The studies examined the effect of the device on subjects with back pain, period pain, joint pain and various injuries.

2. Lifes2good did not respond to this point.

Assessment

1. Upheld

The ASA noted Lifes2good had supplied summaries of the trials only and also  that some of the trials did not seem to be controlled or blinded. We also noted  Lifes2good had not provided full information on how the tests were carried out or how the extrapolated results were achieved. The ASA considered that the evidence submitted by Lifes2good was not sufficiently robust to support the strong efficacy claims and concluded that the ad was likely to mislead.  

On this point the ad breached CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation), 7.1 (Truthfulness) 50.1(Health and Beauty - products and therapies).

2. Upheld

The ASA considered that, because the ad suggested that the device could be used to treat serious medical conditions such as arthritis and the testimonial implied that anti-inflammatory drugs could be ineffective or potentially harmful, the ad could discourage readers from seeking essential treatment for a serious condition.

On this point the ad breached CAP Code clauses 50.3 and 50.4 (Health and Beauty - products and therapies).

Action

The ad should not appear again in its current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)