5 Products That Weren't as Miraculous as Promised

POM's deceitful peers include mouthwash, Airborne
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 10, 2010 5:48 PM CDT
5 Products That Weren't as Miraculous as Promised
Displayed is a bottle of POM Wonderful juice in Philadelphia, Monday, Sept. 27, 2010.    (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

POM Wonderful pomegranate juice is the latest product to find itself in hot water over its health claims, but it's far from alone. The Week lists 5 other exaggerators:

  1. Mouthwash: Johnson and Johnson, CVS, and Walgreens all received reprimands from the FDA last week over unsubstantiated claims that their mouthwash brands could prevent gum disease.
  2. Airborne: The cold remedy ("invented by a teacher!") settled a $23.3 million lawsuit rather than attempt to prove in court that it could cure the common cold

  1. Activia: Dannon paid $45 million to settle a lawsuit over its "disingenuous" claims that Activia yogurt benefited digestion and boosted the immune system.
  2. Rice Krispies: The company sold boxes featuring a hollow claim that its cereal boosted immunity—a claim it dropped in the midst of the swine flu bruhaha last year.
Click here for No. 5, which also happens to be a beverage. (More false advertising stories.)

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