Legal Red Lines and Purchasing Traps: Unveiling the Chaos in the Health Food Industry and its Quality Identification Methods
These types of health foods violate pharmaceutical laws. Some individuals have even experienced a "moon-like" face due to long-term consumption of these foods, similar to the side effects of steroids. Furthermore, there are numerous instances of false or deliberately exaggerated claims regarding the quality (raw materials, purity, efficacy, nutritional value, additives, etc.), specifications, and other aspects (safety, manufacturing methods, etc.) of these health foods. This leads ordinary consumers to mistakenly believe, based solely on these unsubstantiated statements, that the food is better than it actually is or that produced by other manufacturers.
Such improper descriptions may violate the "Law on the Prevention of Improper Gifts and Improper Descriptions." According to a 1984 comprehensive survey on health food sales conducted by the Japanese Economic Planning Agency, approximately 30% of health food descriptions were difficult to understand due to the use of foreign languages and specialized terminology, while about 20% were difficult to understand due to unclear meanings. 80% of health food descriptions may mislead consumers; 40% of descriptions deliberately create anxiety to induce more people to buy. While the aforementioned foods fall under the category of special nutritional products and are covered by the Nutrition Improvement Law, there is no specific health food law to follow.
Those who purchase health foods naturally expect them to have health benefits. However, according to Japan's Pharmaceutical Affairs Law, anything "aimed at preventing and treating diseases, or enhancing and improving the function of human tissues" is a pharmaceutical product. Statements such as "having therapeutic and preventative effects" refer to the efficacy of the drug, or "pharmaceutical efficacy." Regulations stipulate that only pharmaceutical products are permitted to use statements about pharmaceutical efficacy. Therefore, any product other than pharmaceuticals that claims to have pharmaceutical efficacy violates the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law. For pharmaceutical products to gain approval, they must be reviewed by a "Pharmaceutical Affairs Council" composed of medical experts.
Therefore, to prove the effectiveness and safety of a new drug, a large amount of data based on various experiments must be provided. However, for a new food product, as long as it is not harmful, it can be freely developed. Therefore, as long as it can be produced quickly, a new food product can be launched on the market very quickly. There is a Food Hygiene Law regulating general food hygiene requirements, but there is no law regulating health foods. In the past, a large majority of illegal cases involving health foods violated the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law, mainly due to the labeling of medicinal effects without the product being recognized as a drug.
For example, Nishida's calcium supplement is a typical case. It violated the law not because it was ineffective or harmful, but because it was sold with claims of medicinal efficacy despite not being registered as a drug, thus violating the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law. Another company producing the same calcium supplement, however, is still selling it in large quantities because it is registered as a drug. Another example: It is legal for drugs containing Bifidobacterium to publicly claim intestinal cleansing effects. Yogurt containing Bifidobacterium can also be marketed.
Furthermore, it has been confirmed that this type of food does have a cleansing effect on the intestines of animals and humans, but it is not allowed to publicly claim this effect. Publicly claiming this effect would violate the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act. Health foods are naturally products produced with the aim of promoting health; whether they have medicinal effects or not, if they are labeled with unique effects to attract customers, it is considered unlicensed drug sales and violates the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act. Like other foods, health foods must have necessary explanations in accordance with the Food Sanitation Act. Consumers should pay attention to the following explanations when purchasing health foods.
(1) Name: The name should reflect general information so that consumers know exactly what kind of food they are buying, such as wheat germ oil processed food, beef bone meal processed food, etc. If it is only a health food or nutritional supplement food, it is best not to buy it easily. (2) Manufacturing date: Depending on the food, the manufacturing date may be omitted. (3) Manufacturer's location and name: Knowing which manufacturer made the food and where the manufacturer is located is very important when it is necessary to investigate responsibility.
(4) Additive Names: In accordance with the provisions of Appendix 5 to Article 5 of the Implementing Rules of the Food Hygiene Law, when food additives are added to food, the added food additives must be specified. For example, when using tar-based dyes, it should be stated that "Edible Yellow No. 4 (synthetic dye) is used." In addition, for some health foods made from raw materials that are not conventionally used for consumption, such as snake meat, or health foods made using special extraction methods, attention must be paid to the description when purchasing them.