Nature’s Bounty Class Action Says Ginkgo Biloba is Falsely Advertised

A class action lawsuit hit NBTY Inc., Nature’s Bounty Inc. and Rexall Sundown Inc. alleging Nature’s Bounty Ginkgo Biloba capsules are falsely advertised and dupe consumers into believing the supplement will improve their health.

Plaintiffs Paige Petkevicius and Peter Ripley claim that various Ginkgo Biloba products are marketed as providing health benefits including improved brain function and circulation, mental alertness and helping with mild memory problems associated with aging. However, the plaintiffs say Ginkgo Biloba products are completely ineffective and provide no benefits to those who consume them.

At issue are various Nature’s Bounty and Sundown Naturals Ginkgo Biloba capsules and tablets the plaintiffs allege are falsely marketed to consumers as being able to improve brain and circulation functions.

“Numerous scientifically valid studies, performed by independent researchers and published in reputable medical journals, have been conducted on the Ginkgo biloba Products, and they have universally demonstrated that the supplement has absolutely no scientific value in the improvement of brain function, treatment of memory problems or cognitive health,” allege the plaintiffs in their complaint.

“The only reason a consumer would purchase the Ginkgo biloba Products is to obtain the advertised cognitive health benefits and brain function support, which the Ginkgo biloba Products do not provide,” the class action states.

The plaintiffs allege that they and other consumers would not have purchased Ginkgo Biloba had it not been marketed as beneficial for consumers’ health. The plaintiffs point out that the aging American population is becoming increasingly fearful of memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease.

“Not surprisingly, this lucrative market has attracted a variety of hucksters seeking to ‘cash in’ on America’s fear of memory loss by hawking an array of products and services, many promising miraculous results,” the Nature’s Bounty class action claims.

According to the lawsuit, Ginkgo Biloba has been used in Chinese medicine for centuries and the plant can be dated back 250 million years. “Today,” say the plaintiffs, “Ginkgo biloba leaf extract is marketed in the United States as a dietary supplement, thereby escaping the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (‘FDA’) requirement for manufacturers to test the effectiveness of their products prior to their marketing and sale.”

The plaintiffs allege that the makers of Nature’s Bounty and Sundown Naturals Ginkgo Biloba products are targeting the elderly by saying the extract will help with memory problems, but these ads are nothing but a scam, say the plaintiffs.

“Unbiased, randomized, double blind clinical human studies conclude that Ginkgo biloba supplements do not promote, improve, or support memory or cognitive function,” says the class action lawsuit.

The plaintiffs are seeking to represent a Class of New York and California residents who purchased certain Ginkgo Biloba products during the applicable liability period for their personal use. The plaintiffs claim that the makers of Nature’s Bounty and Sundown Naturals have violated various state consumer protection and business laws and have also breached their warranties.

The plaintiffs are also seeking damages, including reimbursement of the proposed Class for the purchase of the Ginkgo Biloba tablets.

The plaintiffs are represented by Todd D. Carpenter of Carlson Lynch Sweet Kilpela & Carpenter LLP, Gillian L. Wade and Allison R. Willett of Milstein Adelman LLP, Melissa Wolchansky, Christopher J. Moreland and Charles D. Moore of Halunen & Associates, and James R. Patterson of Patterson Law Group.

The Nature’s Bounty Ginkgo Biloba False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Petkevicious, et al. v. NBTY Inc., et al., Case No. 3:17-cv-01152-JLS-BGS, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.