BBB National Programs Archive

NAD Recommends USPLabs Discontinue All Claims Reviewed for ‘Jack3d’ Products

New York, NY – May 8, 2013 – The National Advertising Division recommended that UPSLabs discontinue all claims reviewed by NAD for the company’s Jacked3d and Jack3d Micro dietary supplements. The company has agreed to discontinue the claims.

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

As part of its ongoing monitoring program and in conjunction with an initiative with the Council for Responsible Nutrition designed to expand the review of claims made for dietary supplements, NAD requested UPSLabs provide substantiation for the following claims made for Jack3d Micro:

  •  “Getting a pump as you drive to the gym.”
  •  “Being three-quarters through your workout and feeling like you’ve got a full tank”

NAD also requested substantiation for the claim that Jack3d is the “The Original, University Studied legend.”

Following its review, NAD determined that the challenged claims for Jack3d Micro could reasonably be interpreted as product performance claims. Given the absence of product testing, NAD determined that the performance claims were not supported and recommended that they be discontinued.

NAD noted that the advertiser had not provided information as to the dosage or formulation of ingredients in Jack3d Micro and, as a result, had not provided a reasonable basis to support ingredient claims regarding the benefits the ingredients. NAD recommended the claims be discontinued.

Finally, NAD determined that the advertiser had not provided a reasonable basis for its “University Studied” claim and recommended that the claim be discontinued or modified to make clear the cited studies examined the impact of Jack3d on resting heart rate and blood pressure.

NAD noted in its decision that, in order to ensure that its advertising is truthful, USPLabs agreed to modify its future advertising to directly list the study references of the two peer-reviewed published clinical trials on Jack3d.

USPLabs further agreed to add language to make clear that Jack3d is a pre-workout product meant to be used in conjunction with exercise.

USPlabs, in its advertiser’s statement, said the company “respectfully disagrees with some of the conclusions made by NAD. While it believes that it has adequate substantiation, USPlabs will further expand certain statements and also take into consideration NAD’s views as it reviews current and future advertising for its products.”