BBB National Programs Archive

Following NAD Inquiry, BrainFire Says it Will Discontinue Claims for Cognitive Supplement

New York, NY – Jan. 13, 2016 – BrainFire, maker of a dietary supplement promoted as a product designed to improve “all areas of cognitive growth,” said it will voluntarily and permanently discontinue advertising claims for its BrainFire supplement identified in a National Advertising Division inquiry.

NAD is an investigative unit of the advertising industry’s system of self-regulation. It is administered by the Council of Better Business Bureaus.

NAD requested substantiation for a wide range of claims made by BrainFire, including claims that “BrainFire is known as a potent Nootropic which is considered a ‘Smart Supplement.’ Nootropics by definition improve mental functions such as cognition, memory, intelligence, motivation, attention, and concentration by altering the brains supply of neurochemicals.”

In response to NAD’s inquiry, the company said it would voluntarily permanently discontinue the claims at issue.

In reliance on the advertiser’s representation that the claims have permanently discontinued, NAD did not review the claims on their merits.  NAD noted that the claims will be treated, for compliance purposes, as though NAD recommended their discontinuance and the advertiser agreed to comply.

BrainFire, in its advertiser statement, said it “accepts NAD’s decision and represents that the advertising at issue has been voluntarily, permanently discontinued.”

Note: A recommendation by NAD to modify or discontinue a claim is not a finding of wrongdoing and an advertiser’s voluntary discontinuance or modification of claims should not be construed as an admission of impropriety. It is the policy of NAD not to endorse any company, product, or service. Decisions finding that advertising claims have been substantiated should not be construed as endorsements.