Prohibited product claims

General Rule on Prohibited Product Claims

We want to make it easy for buyers to find, discover, and buy products on Amazon. However, it is also important to provide buyers with information about those products that is accurate and trustworthy, and that is not misleading about the qualities or characteristics of a product.

The Federal Trade Commission protects consumers from unfair or deceptive advertising and marketing practices that raise health and safety concerns. You should review FTC Guidelines and other applicable laws, regulations, and guidelines, as you remain responsible for ensuring that the claims made about your products are fully compliant. Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also must approve a product for sale that intends to be used for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease in humans or animals.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates pesticide claims. Products with pesticide claims may require product registration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Amazon policy prohibits the sale of products that are misleading about the qualities or characteristics of the product. Misstatements and partially correct statements are misleading because they do not disclose something the consumer should know.

For more information, see the Restricted Products help pages.

Prohibited Product Claims for Diseases

Amazon prohibits the sale of products that claim to cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent diseases in humans or animals without FDA approval. The following are some example of diseases that products cannot claim to cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent:

• Cancer
• Cancroid
• Chlamydia
• Coronavirus and/or COVID-19
• Cytomegalovirus (CMV)
• Human Papilloma Virus (HPV)
• Gonorrhea (‘The Clap’)
• Hepatitis (A, B & C)
• Herpes Simplex Virus 1 and 2 (HSV1 & HSV2)
• Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
• Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)
• Lymphogranuloma Venereum (LGV)
• Mononucleosis (‘Mono’)
• Mycoplasma Genitalium
• Nongonococcal Urethritis (NGU)
• Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)
• Pubic Lice (‘Crabs’)
• Scabies
• Syphilis
• Trichomoniasis (‘Trich’)
• Liver disease
• Multiple sclerosis
• Kidney cirrhosis or disease
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Dementia
• Stroke
• Parkinson’s/ Parkinson
• Diabetes/ Diabetic/Diabetic Neuropathy
• Flu
• Influenza
• Meningitis
• Glaucoma
• Cataract
• Attention Deficit Disorder Drugs (also known as ADD or ADHD)
• Concussion
• Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
• Nano silver
• Anti-Bacterial
• Anti-Microbial
• Anti-Fungal
• Tumor
• Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
• Depression
• Cystic Fibrosis
• Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
• Lupus
• Muscular Dystrophy
• Multiple Sclerosis
• ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease)
• Gout
• Crohn’s
• Celiac
• Epilepsy
• Seizures
• Obesity
• Autism
• Addictive substance withdrawal

Prohibited Claims for Environmental Products

To sell products that are marketed with environmental claims on Amazon, you must ensure that the environmental claims you make about your product are not misleading about the qualities or characteristics of a product.

We're providing the following highlights from the FTC Green Guides and California's law on environmental claims to assist you in reviewing the environmental claims that you may make about your products. These highlights are not designed to be comprehensive. You should review the FTC Green Guides and other applicable laws, regulations, and guidelines, as you remain responsible for ensuring that the claims made about your products are fully compliant.

Regulated and Prohibited Pesticide Claims

Pesticide claims are regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. These claims may require product registration or require that the product be labeled with an EPA establishment number. The EPA registration and/or establishment number must be clearly labeled on the product. Claims that may require EPA registration include the following:

• Anti-microbial
• Anti-bacterial
• Kills viruses
• Repels insects

Other pesticide claims may be prohibited even if the product is registered with the EPA. Examples include:

• Pesticide products that make public health claims (for example, products marketed to control or mitigate any disease, infection, or pathological condition)
• Pesticide products that make false or misleading claims or are otherwise misbranded (for example, claims regarding the safety of the pesticide or its ingredients, such as “safe”, “non-poisonous", “non-injurious”, “harmless”, “non-toxic”, or “all natural”) For more details on registration and labeling, refer to the Help page on Pesticides and Pesticide Devices.

Prohibited FDA Approved Claims

Products that claim to be "FDA Cleared," "FDA approved" or products that include the FDA logo in associated images need to meet additional requirements (for more information, see: Is It Really 'FDA Approved'? and FDA Logo Policy).

Additional resources

• Environmental Marketing Guidelines
• FDA Disease Claims
• California Law
• Federal Trade Commission Act
• Pesticides and Pesticide Devices
• Drugs and Drug Paraphernalia
• Medical Devices

Last Updated: March 17, 2021