Unisom class action claims company’s ‘natural’ advertising false, misleading

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Unisom natural class action overview: 

• Who: A sleep aid consumer is suing the companies that make Unisom Simple Slumbers sleep-aid products.
• Why: The plaintiff says the products are falsely advertised as being natural.
• Where: The Unisom natural class action was filed in a California federal court.

Unisom Simple Slumbers sleep aid products are falsely advertised as being made solely from natural ingredients, a new class action lawsuit alleges.

Plaintiff Mark Gonzalez filed the class action lawsuit against Chattem Inc., Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLC and Sanofi US Services Inc. on Jan. 9 in a California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.

According to the lawsuit, the companies make and sell a line of “natural” dietary supplements called “Unisom Simple SlumbersTM” with the tagline “GET A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP, NATURALLY.”

The defendants use the marketing as a primary feature differentiating their products from other sleep-aid products in the marketplace, the lawsuit alleges.

“However, Defendants’ ‘naturally’ advertising and marketing is false, deceptive, and misleading because the Products contain several artificial and synthetic ingredients, including Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), and the primary ingredient in the Products, Melatonin,” Gonzalez says.

“These ingredients are not ‘natural,’ and thus, cannot ‘naturally’ help a consumer get a good night’s sleep.”

Products deceive consumers into thinking they do not include synthetic ingredients, lawsuit alleges

The defendants doubled down on the “natural” representations by creating branding that also includes images to enhance the “naturalness” of the products, including flowers, raspberries, lemons and honey, Gonzalez alleges.

The effect is that consumers believe they are consuming a product that does not contain synthetic or artificial ingredients subject to chemical modification, the lawsuit states.

As a result, the defendants’ marketing is false and misleading and likely to deceive consumers and make them pay more for the product than it is worth to them. 

Gonzalez is looking to represent a nationwide class of consumers who bought the companies’ sleep aids, plus a multistate class and a California class.

He is suing for violations of state consumer laws, unjust enrichment and breach of warranty and seeking certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial. 

Meanwhile, consumers have recently filed class action lawsuits against AriZona Beverages, Kroger, Capri Sun-maker Kraft Heinz and Coppertone-maker Beiersdorf regarding false advertising of “natural” ingredients.

Did you buy Unisom Simple Slumbers sleep aids? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. 

Gonzalez is represented by Michael R. Crosner, Zachary M. Crosner, Chad A. Saunders and Craig W. Straub of Crosner Legal PC and Michael R. Reese and George V. Granade of Reese LLP.

The Unisom class action lawsuit is Mark Gonzalez, et al. v. Chattem Inc., et al., Case No. 3:23-cv-00102 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 

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