Unilever ad banned for misleading toothpaste information
A Unilever ad for its Regenerate toothpaste brand has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for promoting misleading clinical trial information.
A poster for the toothpaste stated “82 per cent of enamel is regenerated after three days” and was accompanied by small print detailing clinical trial information.
It drew criticism from one complainant who understood that enamel could not regrow.
Unilever UK said the body could not restore tooth enamel once it was lost but added that the technology in its toothpaste could help regenerate the enamel by restoring tooth mineral content.
The FMCG giant provided the ASA with a number of peer-reviewed and published clinical studies as well as related documents which they said demonstrated the effects of the product and supported the claim.
Despite the evidence, the ASA said the headline would lead readers to believe that enamel could be regenerated.
Unilever was told to accurately reflect the results of their clinical trials for Regenerate in future.
A Unilever spokeswoman said: “We will comply with the ASA’s decision and will continue to promote the benefits of Regenerate Enamel Science products, supported by robust clinical evidence, which was independently peer reviewed and published in the prestigious Journal of Dentistry."