33-006 · EVIDENCE A · LOW-RISK READING
Don’t buy therapies or devices that claim to cure paralysis, blindness, or deafness
别买「能治好瘫痪、失明、耳聋」的疗法和器械
There’s no direct cost, but it saves you money. The hard part is that family members, full of hope, can’t be dissuaded from buying them.
Advertising laws leave no room for ambiguity. Ads for medical services, drugs, and medical devices are prohibited from making any claims about effectiveness, cure rates, or success rates, and they can’t feature real patients sharing their experiences. Phrases like “stand up after three treatment cycles” or “so many people have recovered” are illegal on their own, so there’s no need to even examine the underlying theory. Even products that aren’t classified as medical devices aren’t allowed to mention any disease treatment benefits at all.
A
Move “Don’t buy therapies or devices that claim to cure paralysis, blindness, or deafness” to Future Me's calendar
The excuse
There is no immediate alarm, so the sensible choice can wait for a less busy week.
What feels good now
Today I keep a few minutes, a bit of persistence and avoid interrupting my default routine.
What the source says
The source summarizes the return this way: “Advertising laws leave no room for ambiguity. Ads for medical services, drugs, and medical devices are prohibited from making any claims about effectiveness, cure rates, or success rates, and they can’t feature real patients sharing their experiences. Phrases like “stand up after three treatment cycles” or “so many people have recovered” are illegal on their own, so there’s no need to even examine the underlying theory. Even products that aren’t classified as medical devices aren’t allowed to mention any disease treatment benefits at all.” Evidence grade A. The original states the population, caveats, and sources; this is not a personal forecast.
Open the original entry, check who the evidence applies to, then pick one small step that fits.
THE ENGLISH EDITION
Original recommendation and evidence
6. Don’t buy therapies or devices that claim to cure paralysis, blindness, or deafness
Cost: There’s no direct cost, but it saves you money. The hard part is that family members, full of hope, can’t be dissuaded from buying them.
In plain terms: Advertising laws leave no room for ambiguity. Ads for medical services, drugs, and medical devices are prohibited from making any claims about effectiveness, cure rates, or success rates, and they can’t feature real patients sharing their experiences. Phrases like “stand up after three treatment cycles” or “so many people have recovered” are illegal on their own, so there’s no need to even examine the underlying theory. Even products that aren’t classified as medical devices aren’t allowed to mention any disease treatment benefits at all.
Benefit: Article 16 of the Advertising Law states that ads for medical services, drugs, and medical devices must not contain any of the following: (1) assertions or guarantees regarding efficacy or safety; (2) information about cure rates or effectiveness; (3) comparisons of efficacy, safety, or performance with other drugs or medical devices, or with other medical institutions; (4) use of endorsers or testimonials to recommend or vouch for the product. Article 17 adds that aside from ads for medical services, drugs, and medical devices, “no other ads are permitted to reference disease treatment functions, nor may they use medical terminology or language that could easily be confused with drugs or medical devices.” Article 4 further requires all ads to be free of false or misleading content, and to not deceive or mislead consumers; advertisers bear full responsibility for the accuracy of their ad content (National regulations, revised 2021).
Evidence grade: A
Sources: Advertising Law of China (amended in 2021, Article 4, Article 16, Article 17). <https://flk.npc.gov.cn/detail?id=ff8081817ab231eb017abd6bd860052d>
Notes: There’s only one way to tell if a product is legitimate: whether it dares to make bold, absolute claims. Reputable hospital rehabilitation departments never promise that you’ll stand up after a set number of treatment cycles. If you come across such promotional material, report it to 12315 or your local market regulation authorities. The same marketing tactics are used for health supplements, as detailed in Section 6, Item 10 (Health Supplements). If you’ve already purchased such a product and want a refund, follow the rules for online shopping and prepaid services outlined in Section 5, Item 29 (Online Shopping and Platform Rules). The main beneficiaries of this information are you and your family.
Read the complete Chinese source and notes
6. 别买「能治好瘫痪、失明、耳聋」的疗法和器械
成本: 不花钱，是省钱。难在家里人抱着希望，劝不住。
说人话: 广告法把话说死了。医疗、药品、医疗器械的广告，不许保证疗效，不许说治愈率和有效率，不许找人现身说法。所以「三个疗程站起来」「多少人已经康复」这类话本身就是违法广告，不用再研究它讲的原理。不是医疗器械的东西，连提治病都不允许。
收益: 《广告法》第十六条规定，医疗、药品、医疗器械广告不得含有下列内容：「（一）表示功效、安全性的断言或者保证；（二）说明治愈率或者有效率；（三）与其他药品、医疗器械的功效和安全性或者其他医疗机构比较；（四）利用广告代言人作推荐、证明」。第十七条规定，除医疗、药品、医疗器械广告外，「禁止其他任何广告涉及疾病治疗功能，并不得使用医疗用语或者易使推销的商品与药品、医疗器械相混淆的用语」。第四条规定，广告不得含有虚假或者引人误解的内容，不得欺骗、误导消费者，广告主应当对广告内容的真实性负责（全国，2021 年修正）
证据等级: A
来源: 中华人民共和国广告法（2021 年修正，第四条、第十六条、第十七条）. <https://flk.npc.gov.cn/detail?id=ff8081817ab231eb017abd6bd860052d>
备注: 判断方法只有一条：看它敢不敢把话说满。正规医院的康复科不会承诺你几个疗程能站起来。碰到这类宣传，向 12315 或者当地市场监管部门举报。保健品那一套话术是同一个路子，见第 6 节第 10 条（保健品）。已经买了想退钱，按网购和预付式消费的办法走，见第 5 节第 29 条（网购认平台规则）。这条的受益人是你自己和家人。
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