The Advertising Standards Authority has upheld a GP's complaint about two online adverts for Do Health, a health app built around a blood testing programme, in a ruling published on 7 October 2026. The adverts, seen in March 2026, were both social media posts by a Do Health co-founder: a Facebook video about how hard it is to get a blood test, and a LinkedIn post announcing the launch. The complainant, a GP whom the ASA did not name, challenged whether the posts implied the tests could diagnose and prevent conditions including autoimmune disease, Alzheimer's disease and type 2 diabetes, and whether they implied the service could give more specific advice than existing general guidance. The ASA upheld both points. It said it had seen no evidence that the tests could diagnose or prevent the conditions named, and that wording such as "know exactly what your body needs right now" implied a precision the company had not substantiated.
A founder's own post still counts as an advert
Menwell Ltd, which trades as Do Health, told the ASA its service was personalised behavioural change support using data on 11 metabolic biomarkers, and that the app did not make clinical diagnoses or recommend medication. It argued the LinkedIn post was personal commentary rather than marketing. The ASA disagreed, finding the post fell inside the CAP Code because it promoted the service in space the advertiser controlled. The ruling cited rules 3.1 on misleading advertising, 3.7 on substantiation and 12.1, which covers medicines, medical devices and health-related products. A LexisNexis summary published the same day said the case showed firms must substantiate "the benefits consumers are likely to infer from online promotional content", including founders' personal posts.
What this means in practice
Consumer biomarker testing has drawn regulator attention before. In March 2023 the ASA upheld a complaint by Glasgow GP Dr Margaret McCartney about Numan's Fear Nothing Blood Test, finding the adverts misleading because they implied something was medically wrong if a result fell outside the normal range, when the ASA judged that at least 90% of users would have at least one such result, as reported by The Pharmacist. The CAP Code applies UK-wide, so the ruling binds advertising in Great Britain and Northern Ireland alike. The ASA has told Do Health the adverts must not appear again in the form complained of, and not to imply the tests diagnose or prevent conditions unless it holds evidence. Anyone weighing up a home testing subscription now has the regulator's view on what those adverts can and cannot say. Perqen sells food supplements rather than tests or medicines, and what a membership does and does not cover is set out in the Perqen FAQs.
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This article reports published news and research and is for information only. Food supplements are not a substitute for a varied diet or medical care, and no product mentioned is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Speak to your GP or pharmacist before changing what you take, especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or taking prescribed medicines.