In article >,
"Paul M. Cook" > wrote:


> >> Mark Thorson wrote:

> >>> FDA tells General Mills that Cherrios is an
> >>> unapproved new drug.
> >>>
> >>> http://www.fda.gov/foi/warning_letters/s7188c.htm

> They made a direct claim it lowered your cholesterol 10% if you ate it every
> day. No if ands or buts, they said it absolutely lowered your cholesterol.
> That's better than some statin drugs.

For those who want to Google or search, note that it is "Cheerios", not
"Cherrios".

It looks to me like some marketing genius at GM took the approved
language from the FDA and cleaned it up, taking out all those wishy
washy words and complicated stuff, and adding a specific claim instead
of just stating that it could help (an unspecified amount).

I think the FDA is claiming that because GM took out some of the [part
of a healthy diet] stuff, they made it seem like Cheerios can substitute
for the lack of a healthy diet, making it a drug rather than a food, as
far as reducing coronary heart disease. In addition, although maybe all
of the words and phrases appeared somewhere on the box or the web site,
the size and color of type made it appear to act as a drug rather than a
helpful food.

In short, I agree with Paul. These weren't vague claims that could be
made by any food high in fiber, but specific claims that didn't
acknowledge the rest of a person's diet.

The score? GM has 15 days (from receipt of the above cited letter) to
correct the problem. My best guess is that they'll post paper on each
box out there, with incomprehensible details containing all of the
official FDA language, and tell the consumer to read *that* rather than
the big print on the box. But that's just my guess.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA