FTC files for injunction against Airborne copycat
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
The Federal Trade Commission requests a permanent injunction against supplement firm Improvita Health Products for "engaging in deceptive acts or practices in connection with the advertising, marketing, and sale of the Germ Defense line of products, which are purported to prevent, treat, or cure cold and flu," between 2005 and 2008, according to a complaint filed April 15 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. FTC alleges the Cleveland-based firm's products "expressly or by implication" make certain unsubstantiated prevention and treatment claims. In its advertising the firm likens the products to Airborne, which also faced FTC scrutiny for making unsubstantiated claims (1"The Tan Sheet" Aug. 18, 2008, p. 8)