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The National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs determined that certain claims made by WaterWipes regarding the type and purity of ingredients used in its infant cleansing wipes were supported in context. For example, NAD found claims that simply underscore the advertiser’s claimed benefit of its wipes or distinguish the number of ingredients in its wipes as compared to other competitors’ wipes were properly limited and not falsely disparaging. However, NAD found that other claims that expressly or impliedly convey that competing baby wipes with more ingredients are harmful or can “cause or exacerbate diaper rash” were unsupported and recommended that they be discontinued.

NAD also recommended that WaterWipes discontinue:

These claims were challenged by Proctor & Gamble Company, maker of competing cleansing wipes for infants.

In a case decision issued in March, NAD determined that the BaSICS Study, which was designed to compare three different brands of baby wipes using parental observations of the incidence of diaper rash in infants from birth to eight weeks of age, does not provide adequate substantiation for WaterWipes’ broad superiority claims (“#1 wipe against the causes of diaper rash” and “#1 cleansing wipes helping against the cause of diaper rash”) or the establishment claim (“clinically proven as the #1 wipe against the causes of diaper rash”) at issue in that challenge. Those same claims were also at issue in this challenge.

In the March decision, NAD recommended that the challenged claims be discontinued given its concerns with the reliability of the BaSICS Study. In its advertiser’s statement, the advertiser agreed to abide by NAD’s recommendation and discontinue its “#1” and clinically proven claims.

In the present matter, NAD determined that the BaSICS Study also does not provide adequate substantiation for the remaining BaSICS Study claims at issue in this challenge, each of which convey that WaterWipes outperformed the other wipes included in the study with respect to the incidence and shorter duration of diaper rash. Therefore, NAD recommended that WaterWipes discontinue certain claims, including:

In support of its claim “New independent clinical study reveals use of WaterWipes reduces incidence and shortens duration of diaper dermatitis in premature babies,” the advertiser relied on the results of the Rogers Study, which evaluated the skin care of NICU babies by testing the implementation of particular skin care guidelines, including the use of WaterWipes.

NAD determined that the challenged claim reasonably conveys that the WaterWipes product itself helps shorter the duration of diaper dermatitis – a message not supported by the Rogers Study. NAD noted that the central finding of the Rogers Study is with respect to the study’s Perineal Skin Care Guidelines and not the causal effect of using WaterWipes. Therefore, NAD recommended that the claim be discontinued.

NAD determined that the claims that simply underscore the advertiser’s claimed benefit of its product (i.e., only two ingredients and 99.9% purified water) or distinguish the number of ingredients in WaterWipes as compared to other products were properly limited and not falsely disparaging to competing products. Those claims include:

NAD also determined the claim “We recommend that HCPs are aware of the ingredients contained in baby wipe products being used on the delicate skin of babies. Given the minimal ingredients and purity credentials of WaterWipes, they are an ideal choice” to be supported in the context presented on the advertiser’s website.

Further, NAD found the advertiser’s “world’s purest baby wipes” claim to be supported in context, which defined the message reasonably conveyed, that WaterWipes are the “world’s purest baby wipes” because they contain only “99.9% water and a drop of fruit extract.”

In contrast, NAD determined that certain other claims that expressly or impliedly convey that competing baby wipe products with more ingredients are harmful or can “cause or exacerbate diaper rash” were unsupported and recommended that they be discontinued including the claims:

NAD recommended that the claim “95% of healthcare professionals said they recommend WaterWipes” be discontinued due to a concern that use of the term “healthcare professionals” could convey the message to consumers that some pediatricians were included in the survey (which was limited to health, obstetric, and neonatal nurses). NAD also noted that healthcare professionals could include nurses, physician’s assistants, and others.

In its advertiser statement, WaterWipes stated that it “agrees to comply with NAD’s recommendations” although it “respectfully disagrees with certain findings related to implied takeaways of some claims.”

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