Study Suggests Most Claims Reported on a Beauty Product Are Not Considered Truthful.
CBS News (7/29) reports on its website that “a new study found fewer than one out of five” beauty product “claims was considered truthful by a panel of readers – and ads that used scientific language to describe the benefits were even less persuasive.” The study that was cited was published in the Journal of Global Fashion Marketing: Bridging Fashion and Marketing.
This comes as no surprise as most companies do not perform studies on their products to prove that they actually work. Others “perform” poorly constructed studies, that would never be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, using photographs as “evidence” of effect. Photographs alone prove nothing unless they are standardized (same exact lighting, same exact positioning, etc) so when one looks at photographic claims, one should be wary–is the lighting the same, is the person smiling in one picture and not in another. I never base proof on photographs alone, unless used in a well-performed trial.
Many companies will put the same “active ingredient” in their product and use the claims from other products. Well, while that may sound fine, it is not. While an active ingredient may be essential to achieving the desired result, it is the other ingredients that allow it to penetrate the skin and work. These other ingredients differ, thus changing the result. The active ingredient itself may be different–not as pure or a different percentage. In short, there are many variables.
Therefore, one should be very skeptical regarding claims that are made. Additionally, the same holds true for many products that are sold in Spas, Plastic Surgeon’s offices, and Dermatologist’s offices. Many of the products that I have found on the shelves in these offices were not tested, but based their claims on studies performed on other products from other companies.
