Health

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The Next Miracle Health Food: Cinnamon?

To listen to the spice company, McCormick, you would think that cinnamon was the next great health food:

“Did you know that this ancient spice taken from the inner bark of tropical trees is an antioxidant powerhouse? Cinnamon has one of the highest antioxidant levels of any spice – and even more than many foods. You’ll find as many antioxidants in 1 teaspoon of cinnamon as a full cup of pomegranate juice or ½ cup of blueberries.” — McCormick website

Wow, sounds impressive… until you begin to think about it.

*MOUSE PRINT: From the cinnamon nutrition label on McCormick’s website…

This is a good example of a company hyping a nutritional benefit that has no practical significance because of the small amount of cinnamon that is actually in a typical portion of most foods flavored with the spice.

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Don’t Let the Product Name or Look Fool You!

Sometimes the name of a product or how it is packaged may mislead you into thinking it is something that it is not.

Example 1:

All-in-one products are nothing new — remember Mop & Glo from decades ago? Marketers know that consumers like products that do multiple things. Take Listerine Total Care, for example.

Similar to its “total” toothpaste counterparts, Listerine Total Care claims to provide multiple benefits:

The troublesome claim here is about preventing plaque. Why? Because according to the FDA, there are no ingredients in Listerine Total Care that have been approved and proven to do this!

*MOUSE PRINT:

“[A]nother claim on the label of Listerine Total Care Anticavity Mouthwash is “Fights Unsightly Plaque Above the Gum Line.” This statement represents that the product fights plaque, a well-known precursor to gum disease, including gingivitis. … [N]o mouthwash with sodium fluoride as the active ingredient has been included or proposed for inclusion [in a list of ingredients approved by the FDA as an effective treatment for plaque/gingivitis]. We are not aware of any support for the antiplaque/antigingivitis claims or other statements suggesting that the product is comprehensive in function, providing benefits beyond those related to prevention of cavities. Thus, the product’s labeling claim that it will provide all of the benefits listed, is misleading and accordingly makes it misbranded …” — FDA warning letter to makers of Listerine.

In short, the FDA is claiming that Listerine Total Care is an unapproved drug because it is making health claims that have not been allowed by the agency.

Example 2:

Log Cabin has come out with a new “all natural” syrup in a traditional maple syrup jug:

If you assume this jug contains maple syrup, you would be only partially right.

*MOUSE PRINT:

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CVS: Sign Up for Offers, Get a $4 Coupon?

In the CVS drugstore circular on August 1, the company promised to give customers who signed up for their email list a $4 coupon:

The unreadable fine print in the reduced size picture above only refers to the company’s privacy policy, and that people already on their list are not eligible.

Seemed like an easy way to save $4 to Linda D., a regular Mouse Print* reader. So she signed up at their website. She  filled out her name and email address on the page that contained this description (actual size):

So far, so good. Then she got an email from CVS with her coupon:

Excuse me, $4 off a $20 purchase? Where did that come from? There was no mention whatsoever about this coupon requiring a minimum purchase in the circular. Even visiting the CVS website on the page where you fill in your name and email address, there was no disclosure right on that page either [since changed as noted below].  If you were to click to see the sample coupon, you would have seen the $20 minimum purchase requirement, but few would probably have a reason to view the sample coupon.

Most people would only find out they’ve been hoodwinked after they had given CVS their personal information.

Mouse Print* contacted the PR folks at CVS to ask if they didn’t think this promotion was deceptive, and whether they would now provide people who signed up with a no-strings-attached $4 off coupon. They responded, in part:

“On the sign-up page, a sample coupon was displayed setting forth the details of the offer.

While we feel the information was available, CVS/pharmacy appreciates customer feedback and moving forward, we have enhanced the language for this ad to indicate more clearly that this is an offer for a $4 off $20 coupon. This change has already been made online at www.cvs.com/email. We have also made this change to our circular and it will be reflected on the online circular beginning on 8/22 and due to printing lead times, the new ad will begin running in the printed circular the week of 9/5.”

So, basically CVS decided against doing the honorable thing right away — offering those who signed up based on the misleading ad a no-strings-attached $4 coupon. And notice that they made no mention of running a retraction in newspapers across the country, as might be required by various state advertising laws.