Ginkgold Doesn’t Work As Advertised, Class Action Lawsuit Says

Nature’s Way Products Inc. and Schwabe North America Inc. have been hit with a class action lawsuit alleging false advertising of one of their herbal supplements.

Lead plaintiff Kathleen Sonner alleges in her class action lawsuit that Nature’s Way and Schwabe manufacture and sell “Ginkgold” products made with ginkgo biloba that they claim provide significant health benefits to consumers, but that the products do not actually provide these benefits. Sonner claims that the companies falsely market their ginkgo biloba products as having health benefits, but that ginkgo biloba has not been shown to have any health benefits.

According to the Ginkgold class action lawsuit, Nature’s Way and Schwabe advertise, “through an extensive, integrated and widespread nationwide marketing campaign,” that the Ginkgold products provide “actual, meaningful and significant health benefits for the memory, concentration, mental sharpness, and overall brain health of all consumers who ingest the Ginkgold Products’ tablets.” Further, “[t]hese claimed cognitive health and brain function benefits are the only reason a consumer would purchase the Ginkgold Products,” Sonner alleges.

However, Sonner claims that the Ginkgold products do not work as advertised. “All available, reliable scientific evidence demonstrates that the Ginkgold Products have no efficacy at all,” argues Sonner in her class action lawsuit. Further, the Ginkgold products “are ineffective in the improvement of cognitive health, and provide no benefits related to increasing the memory, concentration, or healthy functioning of consumers’ brains.”

“Numerous scientifically valid studies, performed by independent researchers and published in reputable medical journals, have been conducted on ginkgo biloba, and they have universally demonstrated that ginkgo biloba does not improve brain function, and is not effective in the treatment or improvement of memory problems or cognitive health,” the Ginkgold class action lawsuit alleges.

The Ginkgold class action lawsuit alleges that the plaintiff and the proposed Class Members relied on advertising from Nature’s Way and Schwabe that ginkgo biloba provided health benefits when deciding to purchase the Ginkgold products. “As a result of the express and implied misleading health benefits message conveyed by their marketing campaign, Defendants have caused Plaintiff and consumers to purchase a product which does not perform as represented,” alleges Sonner.

“Plaintiff and other similarly situated consumers have been harmed in the amount they paid for the Ginkgold Products, which … is approximately $20.00 per 150 count bottle of Ginkgold,” according to the class action lawsuit.

The Ginkgold class action lawsuit alleges that “the front of the Ginkgold Products’ packaging and labeling states in all capital letters, printed in large, bolded font, that the Ginkgold Products are ‘for MENTAL SHARPNESS Memory & Concentration.’” Sonner also alleges that until 2013, the side-panel packaging also contained misleading information about the effectiveness of ginkgo biloba, including statements that the product “stimulates activity in all areas of the brain,” “supports healthy circulation to the brain and extremities,” “helps maintain blood vessel tone,” and “Ginkgold-the smarter choice for mental sharpness.”

Sonner also alleges that the side-panel packaging “further warrants that in ‘head-to-head research against other ginkgo extracts only Ginkgold, ‘increased activity in all areas of the brain,’ ‘produced potent alpha enhancing effects,’ and ‘could be classified as a cognitive activator.’” The Ginkgold class action lawsuit points to three images of “brain scan” diagrams included on the side-packaging and argues that the companies used these images “to support the claims of increased brain activity of the Ginkgold Products as compared to unidentified ‘Brand A’ and ‘Brand B’ gingko extract products.”

“The diagrams include three brains, with the ‘Ginkgold brain’ almost completely filled in white, demonstrating the ‘increased brain activity,’ compared to the other two ‘brain scans,’ with the brains are only partially filled in white,” the Ginkgold class action lawsuit says.

According to the class action lawsuit, the Ginkgold products include, “Ginkgold® Advanced Ginkgo Extract” and “Ginkgold® Max Advanced Ginkgo Extract Max 120 mg” (“Ginkgold Max”). The plaintiff claims that the companies violated California business law and also breached express warranties made to consumers. She is seeking damages on behalf of herself and all similarly situated consumers.

Nature’s Way is also being investigated for alleged false advertising of some of its homeopathic products.

Sonner is represented by Blood Hurst & O’Reardon LLP.

The Ginkgold False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Sonner v. Schwabe North America Inc., et al., Case No. 2:15-cv-05125, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

UPDATE: On Sept. 14, 2016, Class certification was proposed in a Ginkgold lawsuit that accuses the makers of the ginkgo biloba supplement of falsely promoting it as benefiting brain health in ways it actually doesn’t.

UPDATE: On February 2, 2017, the court granted summary judgement in favor of the defendant, putting an end to the Nature’s Way Ginkgold class action lawsuit.