Misleading ads passing off regular food as health supplements surge 87% in 3 years

False and exaggerated advertisements that mislead consumers into believing ordinary food products are health supplements have surged 87 percent over the past three years, according to national audit data.

The data, submitted to Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Nam In-soon of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, showed that 23,324 such misleading advertisements were caught over the past five years. The annual figure rose from 3,864 cases in 2022 to 7,244 in 2025 — an increase of 87.47 percent and the highest on record.

Nam urged the public to stay vigilant about false and exaggerated advertising for both ordinary food and health supplements during the chuseok holiday season, and called on authorities to step up enforcement.

Among the 15,812 cases of improper advertising detected over the five-year period, claims related to disease prevention or treatment were the most common at 5,291 cases, or 33 percent of the total. False or exaggerated claims accounted for 4,866 cases (31 percent), followed by consumer deception at 2,523 cases (16 percent).

"Advertising ordinary food as if it were a health supplement is an act that misleads and deceives consumers," Nam said. "Particularly during holidays, when demand for health supplements surges, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety must strengthen its crackdown and put in place effective preventive measures to protect consumers from harm caused by false and exaggerated advertising."