The FDA Says Cocoa may be Advertised with Limited Health Claims

Themacforums – Feb 20, 2023 – The FDA Says Cocoa may be Advertised with Limited Health Claims.  While the Food and Drug Administration does not support claims that cocoa is healthy, a recent decision permits them to remark that a large body of evidence suggests that cocoa may have some health advantages.

These advantages include lowering the risk of cardiovascular illnesses, albeit there isn’t enough proof to say it.

What the FDA decided is as follows:

Given that the qualified health claim is properly worded to avoid misleading consumers, the FDA assesses that there is very little credible scientific evidence supporting a link between the high flavanol cocoa powder’s cocoa flavanol content and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Such claims must contain phrases like “supportive but not conclusive” or “not conclusive,” according to the FDA. The FDA also makes it plain that falsifying the evidence will not be tolerated.

Consumers won’t be misled about the strength of the supporting evidence if qualifying language informs them of the level of research behind the assertion. It is not correct to refer to the level of evidence as “supported but not conclusive” or “not conclusive” when discussing the claim that consuming cocoa flavanol in high-flavanol cocoa powder lowers the risk of CVD.

The strength of the data supporting a link between cocoa flavanol in high-flavanol cocoa powder and a decreased risk of CVD is overstated by these phrases, which is why they are inaccurate.

The FDA subsequently authorized four variations of what it would permit:

1. “High flavanol cocoa powder contains cocoa flavanol, which may lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, but the FDA has determined that there is very little scientific support for this claim.”
2. “High flavanol cocoa powder contains cocoa flavanol that may lower the risk of cardiovascular disease. According to FDA, there is only a small amount of supporting scientific data.
3. The risk of cardiovascular disease may decrease by consuming cocoa flavanol found in high-flavanol cocoa powder, which includes at least 4% of naturally preserved cocoa flavanols, according to little research evidence.
4. The use of cocoa flavanols found in high-flavanol cocoa powder, which includes at least 4% of naturally preserved cocoa flavanols, may lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, according to a small body of scientific research. At least 4% of the product’s cocoa flavanols are naturally preserved. Check out the nutrition facts for these and other nutrients.