Advertisement of Herbal medicines and Related Products is regulated under the Herbal Medicines and Related Products Advertisement Regulations, 2021, which requires all advertisement materials including script store boards, artwork, radio scripts to be submitted for approval to the NAFDAC.
Moreover, both nutrition and health claims are regulated in Nigeria.
V. NUTRITION CLAIMS
According to the Food Fortification Regulations, 2021, claims such as “Source of [Vitamin/Mineral]”, “Good Source of [Vitamin/Mineral]” and “Excellent Source of [Vitamin/Mineral]” can only be used when certain conditions have been met.
VI. HEALTH CLAIMS
According to the Pre-Packaged Food (Labeling) Regulation, 2022, generally, no claims concerning medicinal (preventive, alleviative or curative) effects can be used.
Moreover, pursuant to the Herbal Medicines and Related Products Advertisement Regulations, 2021:
(i) Herbal Medicines and Related Products shall not be labeled as a treatment, preventive or cure for any of the diseases, disorders or abnormal states as specified in the Schedule to Regulations.
(ii) It is forbidden to not sell, advertise, display or orally present any Herbal Medicine or Related Products to the general public whose label contains such words as "for vitality".
(iii) It is forbidden to sell, advertise, display or use any Herbal Medicine or Related Product with a name suggestive of the symptom, disorders, diseases or abnormal states that it is supposed to treat, prevent or cure.
(iv) The label of Herbal Medicine and Related Products with antipyretic and analgesic property shall not bear the indication "for fever" but shall be labelled "for feverish conditions" or "feverish feeling".
(v) The product name shall not be suggestive of therapeutic claim.
(vi) No implied claims or suggestions of Herbal Medicine and Related Products may be made, if there is inadequate evidence of safety or a lack of substantial evidence of effectiveness.
(vii) Where a claim of effectiveness or therapeutic indication labelling is made for any Herbal Medicine and Related Products, it shall carry boldly and in close proximity to the claim, a statement to the fact that such claim has not been evaluated by NAFDAC, unless such claim has been clinically proven and deemed satisfactory by the Agency.