I usually try to cut drug companies a break. After doing research for one of them for my first career and seeing some of the amazing therapies that have come from industry research, I know first-hand about the lifesaving drugs that have come from drug companies. For this, they deserve much credit.
But when they try to fool people into buying their products – usually OTC – they need to be called out, something I've done dozens of times. Let's add one to that number, courtesy of a company called Haleon, a spinoff of a joint venture of Pfizer and GSK. The company's marketing campaign for Advil Targeted Relief Pain Relieving Cream (Up to 8 Hours of Powerful Relief of Minor Arthritis Pain, Joint Pain, Lower Back Pain, and Muscle Pain) is seriously sleazy and intentionally (IMO) misleading. Why? Because there is NO ADVIL in Advil Targeted Relief Pain Relieving Cream.
Wilbur, a long-time arthritis sufferer, is astounded to discover that there is no Advil in Advil. Note that the disclaimer of this mildly confusing factoid (red arrow) written in the Arial 0.1 font: DOES NOT CONTAIN THE SAME ACTIVE INGREDIENT AS ADVIL. Maybe Superman can read it. Or not. Image credits: Deviant Art, Flickr
What is Advil?
This should be straightforward, but Haleon trashed that idea. Advil is the brand name of the widely used antiinflammatory/analgesia drug ibuprofen, which was discovered in the 1960s and approved in the US in 1974. In 1984, it was first marketed as Advil by Whitehall-Robins Healthcare, now part of Haleon. That name sure seems to come up pretty often. More on this later.
What is in Advil Creme?
Let's start with the easy part: No Advil, no ibuprofen. Instead, it's a mixture of four common substances:
- Menthol (cough drops, itching remedy, Vicks VapoRub)
- Methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen, artificial flavor, topical pain reliever)
- Capsaicin (Cayenne Pepper, pepper spray)
- Camphor (formerly in mothballs, cough drops, urinal cakes)
All four are available OTC or from Amazon as single ingredients or various mixtures.
Is Haleona a sleazebag company?
I'll let you draw your own conclusions, but if I had my way I'd rename the company WhattheHalareyouwastingyourmoneyon? And with good reason. The company pulled the same s### last year! (I wrote about this here.) This one might even be worse.
Just like non-Advil Advil, Haleon sells non-Voltaren Voltaren
Using Oz-like wordsmanship, Haleon markets a worthless dietary supplement called Voltaren (the brand name for diclofenac). Look a little closer. The name of this crap isn't really Voltaren. It's "From Voltaren" and uses the same little blue guy being run over by an orange globe – the exact same logo used by real Voltaren. Please tell me with a straight face that Haleon isn't trying to fool people into thinking that its Boswellia and turmeric capsules are in any way related to Voltaren the drug.
NOW, is Haleon a sleazebag company?
I could argue yes. One case of intentionally misleading labels might be (but isn't) an accident; two is obviously not. It would seem that Haleon employs suboptimal scruples in its marketing strategy – fooling consumers into buying something with a label that may be legal but sure ain't honest. Shame on you!
Image: Giphy
Josh Bloom
Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science
Dr. Josh Bloom, the Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science, comes from the world of drug discovery, where he did research for more than 20 years. He holds a Ph.D. in chemistry.
