Requirements for advertising of over-the-counter drugs: Advertisements for over-the-counter drugs should clearly indicate “Please follow the drug instructions or purchase and use under the guidance of a pharmacist.”

According to Article 16 of the "Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China", advertisements for medical treatment, drugs, and medical devices shall not contain the following content:

(1) Expressing efficacy and safety assertion or guarantee;

(2) Explain the cure rate or effectiveness;

(3) Compare the efficacy and safety with other drugs, medical devices or other medical institutions;

(4) Using advertising spokespersons for recommendations and certifications;

(5) Other content prohibited by laws and administrative regulations.

The content of drug advertisements shall not be inconsistent with the instructions approved by the drug regulatory department of the State Council, and contraindications and adverse reactions shall be clearly marked. Prescription drug advertisements should clearly indicate "This advertisement is for medical and pharmaceutical professionals only", and non-prescription drug advertisements should clearly indicate "Please follow the drug instructions or purchase and use under the guidance of a pharmacist."

Ads for medical devices recommended for personal use should clearly indicate “Please read the product instructions carefully or purchase and use them under the guidance of medical personnel.” If there are contraindications or precautions in the medical device product registration certificate, the advertisement should be clearly marked with "For details of the contraindications or precautions, please refer to the instructions"

Over-the-counter drug advertising regulations

1. Over-the-counter drugs Advertisements must not take advantage of the public's lack of medical knowledge, use medical and pharmaceutical terms that are difficult for the public to understand and easily cause confusion, and cause the public to misunderstand the efficacy and safety of drugs.

2. OTC may publish advertisements in mass media or conduct advertising targeting the public in other ways.

3. Over-the-counter drug advertisements must also bear the special logo for over-the-counter drugs (OTC).

4. The warning in over-the-counter drug advertisements is: "Please purchase and use according to the drug instructions or under the guidance of a pharmacist."

5. If you use the name of an over-the-counter drug to name various activities, you can only publish the drug name.

Extended information:

Regulations on advertising of prescription drugs

1. Prescription drugs can be sold in medical and pharmaceutical laboratories jointly designated by the Ministry of Health and the State Food and Drug Administration. Advertisements may be published in professional publications, but advertisements may not be published in mass media or otherwise targeted at the public.

2. Prescription drugs shall not be advertised to the public in the form of free medical or pharmaceutical professional publications.

3. If the name of a prescription drug is the same as the trademark or manufacturer's name of the drug, the trademark or company name shall not be used to publish disguised advertisements in media other than medical and pharmaceutical professional publications.

4. Various activities shall not be named after the names of prescription drugs or trademarks and corporate names registered under the names of prescription drugs.

5. The warning in prescription drug advertisements is: "This advertisement is for medical and pharmaceutical professionals only."

People's Daily Online - What you need to know about medical (therapeutic) advertising