Ask what the evidence actually tested

Separate advertising from checking

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says government agencies do not approve health advertisements before publication.

Ask for the evidence behind a treatment claim. A convincing layout is not that evidence.

Match the evidence to the product

A compound is medicine prepared for a particular order, rather than a finished product from a drug company.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns about a promise for made-to-order medicines in its guidance checked September 26, 2026. It calls promises of proven equal results with approved products misleading.

This guidance does not say that a study compared the medicines and found a failure. Ask for a study of the exact product that supports the promise.

Ask whether the evidence tested the finished medicine, the proposed preparation, or only an ingredient.

Ask who took part

Was the work in people, animals, or a lab? If it involved people, ask what condition they had and what was measured.

Then ask how closely that question matches your own reason for seeking care.

Read dates without guessing at outcomes

An advisory committee is a group of outside experts that gives the FDA advice.

One official list names extra raw ingredients that ordinary pharmacies may use to make medicine.

Under the September 26, 2026 rules, a committee’s advice does not add an ingredient to that list. The FDA needs a completed formal rule change.

A suggested change is still a suggestion. An expert vote gives advice; it is not the final rule.

Ask which rule now permits the proposed ingredient and when it took effect. Ask to see the completed rule, not just a meeting report.