So you think I complain just for the sake of it..?

It’s becoming obvious to all that I am an irritating pedant who scours advertising for misleading claims, silly nonsense and outright lies. I do not, however, complain to the authorities unless I feel there is a good reason to do so.

In order to prove this point, here are some things I have chosen to ignore…

Another one of my ASA complaints resolved this week – along with yet more about misleading healthcare claims

There were only six adjudications listed on the ASA website this week and the only one relating to health was yet another example of opticians complaining about each other. I am so bored with this that I can’t even be bothered to link to the other seemingly countless examples recently encountered. To any reader less disinterested than I, they aren’t hard to find.

Of the sixty informally resolved cases, seven were in the Health and Beauty sector:

I wish I could be like Dr Steve

It was no surprise to read on Wikipedia that Ray Davies of the Kinks admitted David Watts is a real person (a concert promoter in Rutland). I expect Paul Weller had a similar individual in mind when he suggested The Jam cover the song  – despite the fact he didn’t want to sing it himself.

We all know a David Watts. That someone who is insufferably good at everything and a success in all they do.

This week’s ASA adjudications: all four related to misleading health claims

All four of this week’s adjudications related to misleading health claims (and judging from the list of informally resolved complaints, I predict a handful of those did too).

Is colloidal silver a medicine, food supplement or neither?

I’ve just had a response from the MHRA’s Advertising Complaints department to last week’s Fishbarrelling of UK Colloidal Silver and Beechcroft Retreats.

I was told that colloidal silver is a not a medicine (but is in fact a food) and that I should forward my complaints to Trading Standards.

I am not convinced that this is the case and outlined my thoughts in the following email: