Who: The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), Birling Shore Ltd t/a ShroomIQ and Persons unknown t/a Cloud Nine
Where: United Kingdom
When: 1 April and 22 April 2026
Law stated as at: 7 May 2026
What happened
The Committee of Advertising Practice has published a guidance note on ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) references in advertising. The UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct and Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) includes certain rules around medicinal or medical claims, food supplements and specific health claims, and the ASA treats ADHD as falling within such prohibitions.
Under the CAP Code, if an advert makes medicinal or medical claims about a product, that product must be licensed by a body such as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) or under the auspices of the European Medicines Agency, or have an applicable conformity marking. Advertisers must not discourage people from getting essential medical treatment. They must also not give specific advice about diagnosis of or treatment for such conditions, unless that advice comes from a suitably qualified medical professional. Ads for food or food supplements must not say or imply that food can prevent, treat or cure human disease.
The code requires advertisers only to use health claims in ads for food if those claims have been authorised on the Great Britain Nutrition and Health Claims Register (the GB NHC Register). Those claims are any stating, suggesting or implying a relationship between a food or ingredient and health. Any health claim not listed on that register is not permitted in ads for food products. Ads for food products must not make health claims that refer to the recommendation of an individual health professional, and marketers must not use health professionals to endorse medicines.
Claims that a product can “help with ADHD”, “support people with ADHD” or “reduce the symptoms of ADHD” therefore may risk breaching the CAP Code if they do not comply with the applicable rules, as illustrated by two recent rulings outlined below.
Hoodie ad claiming to help with ADHD
A paid-for social media ad for Cloud Nine, seen in December 2025, promoted a hooded jumper with soft stress balls built into the sleeves. The ad stated “Say Goodbye ADHD, anxiety and racing thoughts” and “15,000+ families use this hoodie for calm.”
A neurodiversity consultant challenged whether the ad made medical claims and discouraged essential treatment for a condition requiring medical supervision.
The ASA upheld the complaint. It found that the ad implied that the product could treat or manage symptoms of ADHD and anxiety, which constituted medical claims requiring the product to be registered with the MHRA as a medical device. The product held no such registration. The ASA also considered that, by implying that the product could treat or manage the symptoms of ADHD, the ad discouraged consumers from seeking essential treatment for a condition requiring medical supervision.
Ads for children’s supplement challenged
The complaints against ShroomIQ, a children’s supplement brand, related to content on the brand’s website, seen in October 2025, and a paid-for social media ad, seen in December 2025. The website featured customer testimonials for the company’s product in which parents stated that their children’s ADHD and anxiety symptoms had improved (for example, using the supplement had made children “more confident speaking up in class” and they did not get “as frustrated when working through tricky subjects”). It also featured a “Meet the Experts Behind ShroomIQ” section presenting named “experts in child nutrition and development” involved in creating ShroomIQ’s product alongside quotes about the product and its benefits. A National Library of Medicine Studies page also referenced studies on various ingredients and their effects on ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, anxiety and depression. The paid-for ad included claims that the product provided “brain support” and supported “calm, mood and confidence.”
A complainant challenged whether the following claims complied with the CAP Code.
Claims to help with ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, anxiety and depression
The ASA said that the cumulative effect of the testimonials, expert section and studies page conveyed that the supplement could alleviate ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, anxiety and depression. Those were medicinal claims requiring MHRA authorisation, which ShroomIQ did not hold. Although the website included disclaimers, such as “These studies are not specific to our product. We do not claim the same results” and “Based on individual experiences. Results may vary”, the ASA did not consider them sufficient to displace that impression. Additionally, ShroomIQ’s product was, in general terms, marketed as a food supplement. The ad was therefore in breach of the CAP Code’s requirements relating to both food supplements and medicinal products.
Specific health claims
The ASA said that some consumers may have understood the claims in the ads, including “Daily Focus Support”, support for “normal cognitive function” and “brain support”, as not specifically relating to symptoms of ADHD, Tourette Syndrome, anxiety and depression, but rather that the ShroomIQ supplement could, for all children, increase focus, cognitive function, calmness, mood and confidence. In that context, those claims were specific health claims, because they related to beneficial effects on particular physiological functions. Those claims, however, went beyond what was authorised on the GB NHC Register, and some claims were made for ingredients for which no authorised health claims existed.
Health professional endorsements
Several of the individuals featured were presented with the title “Dr”, with descriptions of their roles including “ADHD & Cognitive Development Specialist”. However, a disclaimer at the bottom of the homepage stated that some of the product visuals, names and people “are AI-generated representations used for illustrative and branding purposes only”. The ASA said that the “Meet the Experts” section created the overall impression that health professionals endorsed the product’s claimed benefits. The ad therefore breached the CAP Code’s requirements for use of health professionals in relation to both food supplements and medicinal products.
Why this matters
ADHD is classified as a medical condition, and any claim that implies that a product can help manage or alleviate it is likely to be treated as a medicinal claim by the ASA. Where advertisers wish to make such claims in relation to their products, they must ensure the product is appropriately authorised and registered with the MHRA as a medicine or medical device before including those claims in advertising. For supplements and food products, any health claims made must be specifically authorised on the GB NHC Register, and health professional endorsements are prohibited for food supplements – even if the “health professionals” are no more than AI-generated representations.
Advertisers in the supplement and wellness space should also note that the ASA assesses advertising as a whole: disclaimers, testimonials, expert endorsements and research references can together create an impermissible medicinal claim, even where each element appears qualified in isolation.
