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Celebrity chef Pete Evans has been fined more than $25,000 by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) over claims he made about a product called a "BioCharger".
Key points:
- Evans said in a video: "It's programmed with a thousand different recipes and there's a couple in there for the Wuhan coronavirus."
- The TGA is focusing particularly on products claiming to treat coronavirus at the moment
- The product's page on Evans's website made it clear that it was purporting to be of therapeutic use
The "hybrid subtle energy revitalisation platform" came with a $14,990 price tag and claimed to "optimise and improve potential health, wellness and athletic performance" on Evans's website, but it appears to have been removed from the site.
The website claimed it replicates light, frequencies, harmonics, pulsed electromagnetic fields and voltage that are found in nature, for a variety of treatments.
It was brought to the attention of the TGA by a Facebook Live video that Evans posted on April 9, in which he said: "It's programmed with a thousand different recipes and there's a couple in there for the Wuhan coronavirus."
At the time, the creators of the BioCharger NG, Advanced Biotechnologies, released a statement distancing themselves from Evans's claims, emphasising that "the BioCharger NG is not a medical device" and is not intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of diseases or any other conditions.
The TGA said there was "no apparent foundation" for Evans's claim that the BioCharger could have any effect on the virus and issued two infringements totalling $25,200.
In March, the TGA sent out a warning to advertisers that it would be on the lookout for advertisers trying to exploit the current climate around COVID-19.
The warning said, "criminal offence and civil penalty provisions apply to illegal advertising of therapeutic goods", in line with another warning from February.
"Any claim that references COVID-19 is a restricted representation under therapeutic goods legislation, and is of significant concern to the TGA given the heightened public concern about the pandemic," a statement read.
"Restricted representations" in the Therapeutic Goods Advertising Code refer to the risks of spruiking treatments for "serious" diseases and also urges advertisers to take public interest into consideration.
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According to the TGA:
The public interest criteria ask whether the reference to a serious form of a disease in an advertisement would:
- be likely to take advantage of the vulnerability of consumers or particular groups of consumers, when faced with the disease, condition, ailment or defect
- be likely to result in consumers not seeking medical advice at an appropriate time
- be likely to have a negative impact on public health
While one of the infringements was related to the claim in the Facebook video, the other had to do with the claims on Evans's website.
The BioCharger's page on the website claimed it was "proven to restore strength, stamina, coordination and mental clarity", helped with "sharpening your mental clarity", aided "recovery … from an injury, stress", and "[accelerated] muscle recovery and [reduced] stiffness in joints".
Products have to be placed on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods before they can be advertised as having therapeutic benefits, unless subject to specific exemptions.
"The TGA is monitoring non-compliance, particularly in relation to the advertising of products that claim to prevent or cure COVID-19 and will continue to take action in relation to any advertisements that do not meet the requirements, including those that seek to mislead consumers," it said.
The president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners welcomed the TGA's decision.
"I hope that it gives pause for thought for anyone taking advantage of this pandemic to spread false and misleading nonsense on social media," Harry Nespolon wrote on Twitter.
"This celebrity chef can carry on all he likes about 'activated almonds' and whatever latest fad excites him but he should steer clear of health advice, particularly when it comes to something as serious as COVID-19.
"I encourage all Australians to ignore his social media content. Please listen to the experts including your GP, we have your best interests at heart and we are doing all we can.
"As I have stated previously, this 'light machine' doesn't do anything but drain your wallet. However, the problem is that it may lull people into a false sense of security, which means they don't act as cautiously as they might on responsibilities such as social distancing."
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Topics: covid-19, diseases-and-disorders, health, advertising, australia
First posted