New York, NY – April 13, 2005 – The Electronic Retailing Self-Regulation Program (“ERSP”), the electronic direct-response industry’s self-regulatory forum supervised by the National Advertising Review Council (“NARC”), announced that it has recommended that direct response marketer Anti- Aging Formulas (“AAF”) discontinue both general performance and comparative performance claims made in the 30-minute infomercial for the Renuva system.  ERSP did however agree that certain age related statements made in the context of the advertisement could be considered puffery.  The truth and accuracy of the marketer’s claims came to the attention of ERSP from its ongoing monitoring program.

In the inquiry, ERSP requested that the marketer provide substantiation for several core claims that were communicated in the thirty-minute infomercial. The claims at issue included:  comparative claims (“I started taking the injectible HGH…it’s just great with Renuva not to have to take the injections anymore… it’s all there.” and “…you get what could be the simplest and most effective nonprescription way to experience increased HGH levels ever developed.”; performance claims ( “Increased energy and stamina; decreased weight and body fat; restored muscle mass; reduction of aches and pains, younger, thicker skin; improved quality of sleep; fewer skin wrinkles.”) and age related claims ( “Take 5, 10, even 15 years or more off the way you look and feel” and “Reversing the effects of aging” )

ERSP concluded that these claims made in the infomercial could be reasonably interpreted by consumers as unqualified superiority claims and a direct comparison of its product’s efficacy with professionally administered injections of HGH. As such, without the performance data on its competitors necessary to support its comparative claims, it is recommended that Anti-Aging Formulas discontinue these express and implied claims. Lastly, although ERSP recommended that the claim stating that Renuva can “reverse the aging process” be discontinued, it agreed with the marketer that the “feel and look years younger” claims can be regarded as permissible statements of puffery in the context in which they were made in the subject advertisement.

In response to ERSP’s decision, AAF stated that it  “… is pleased to have worked with ERSP and participated in the Self-Regulation process…AAF has reviewed ERSP’s finding and analysis … and respectfully disagrees. In the spirit of self regulation, AAF will take ERSP’s recommendations under consideration for all future modification or edits of the advertisement.”