Listerine Faces Lawsuit

Listerine mouthwash’s manufacturer, Pfizer Inc, is facing legal action after U.S. District Judge Denny Chin declared that an ad campaign for the product was false advertising and ordered the campaign stopped. The print ads in question alleged that rinsing with Listerine mouthwash achieved the same results as flossing, specifically claiming that Listerine was “clinically proven to be as effective as floss at reducing plaque and gingivitis.” The television ads repeated the claim, but added the statement, “There is no replacement for flossing.”

Plaintiff McNeil-PPC Inc., a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, said that the campaign’s false claims posed an unfair threat to one of their primary products—dental floss. Chin concurred in his decision, writing, “Dentists and hygienists have been telling their patients for decades to floss daily. The benefits of flossing are real … [and] Pfizer’s implicit message that Listerine can replace floss is false and misleading.”

Judge Chin further commented that “substantial evidence” supported the importance of regular flossing, and that the studies upon which Pfizer had based its ad emphasized that oral health care professionals should recommend daily flossing, and that they not recommend using Listerine as a substitute.

—DB