Ad description

A radio ad for Listerine mouthwash featured someone asking, "So sir are you ready to order?" A man replied, "Yeah I'll get the crispy duck to start and a few fingernails to nibble on. Two biros and a pencil, an envelope, garlic bread, a slice of cheesecake, oh and perhaps a bus ticket." "And to drink?" "Red wine, a coffee, two teas one white, one black." A voice-over then stated, "It's amazing what your mouth goes through, and brushing alone isn't enough. Try the Listerine routine for 21 days and if you don't love how clean your mouth feels we'll give you your money back. Listerine Total Care. For total oral health."

Issue

The complainant challenged whether the claim "brushing alone isn't enough" was misleading and could be substantiated.

Response

Johnson & Johnson Ltd said the claim could be substantiated and was not misleading. They said that a 2009 survey of adult dental health, which they provided, showed that despite 75% of the population brushing their teeth at least twice a day, and a further 23% brushing once a day, there were still high incidences of oral health issues. Some evidence of periodontal disease was found in 83% of dentate adults, such as bleeding, calculus or periodontal pocketing. They said that optimal plaque control was required to prevent plaque accumulation leading to gingivitis (inflammation of the gum tissue), which could eventually lead to periodontitis. They said that many long-term (6 month) studies had been carried out and they demonstrated the efficacy of Listerine in reducing plaque bacteria compared with brushing alone. They said that one of the studies concluded that the benefits of the mouthwash had sufficient value compared to current practises that they should be added to oral hygiene regiments. They said the claim was also linked to the limits of brushing, which focused on the teeth alone, whereas plaque bacteria lived throughout the mouth, and as a liquid Listerine could get where brushing couldn't. They said studies showed that Listerine could reduce plaque bacteria to a greater degree than brushing alone and the effect lasted for a number of hours after use. They said the key oral care concerns for consumers were gum disease, tooth decay, bad breath, tooth staining, losing teeth, plaque, cavities, tartar, fillings and bleeding gums. They said Listerine contained ingredients to help protect against all of these. They provided ten studies to support the claim.

They did not believe the claim implied that the dental community recommended the use of a mouthwash to maintain oral health, and said the ad did not suggest or imply professional involvement or endorsement. They provided an opinion from an independent dental health charity that no dentist would consider brushing alone was sufficient for oral care and that all dental health professionals would also recommended interdental cleaning with interdental brushes or floss, and a significant majority would also advise the addition of a fluoride containing or antibacterial mouthwash as a useful additional element of the daily routine. Johnson & Johnson Ltd also provided the results of a 2010–2012 study on the opinions of dental healthcare professionals in which dentists rated the importance of mouthwash as part of an oral care routine as 5.6/10, which they said showed the oral healthcare community did not consider brushing to be enough.

The RACC said they were satisfied with the substantiation submitted by the advertiser prior to acceptance for broadcast and has nothing further to add.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA considered that consumers would understand the claim "brushing alone isn't enough" to mean that it was generally accepted within the dental community that brushing alone was not sufficient to maintain oral health, and that a mouthwash should also be used. Although the ad did refer to "how clean your mouth feels" we did not consider this would be understood as qualifying the claim, and noted the ad also stated "For total oral health". Johnson & Johnson Ltd supplied evidence which they said demonstrated that using Listerine could reduce plaque bacteria in comparison to brushing alone, and said that it contained ingredients that addressed key oral health concerns. However, although we understood that most oral health advice emphasised the importance of cleaning in between teeth in addition to brushing, we had not been provided with evidence that it was generally accepted within the dental community that the use of a mouthwash was necessary to maintain oral health. We therefore concluded the claim was misleading and had not been substantiated.

The ad breached BCAP Code rules  3.1 3.1 Advertisements must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.  (Misleading advertising) and  3.9 3.9 Broadcasters must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that the audience is likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.  (Substantiation).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.

BCAP Code

3.1     3.9    


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