Chemical peel advertising rules for med spas and dermatology

Chemical peels sit on the treatment menu of med spas, dermatology practices and plastic surgery practices, and they show up in ads as “glow peel” specials, peel series packages, acne and pigment offers, and take-home peel kits sold at the front desk. The words in those ads matter twice over. FDA decides whether a skin product is a cosmetic or a drug by its intended use, and claims in advertising are one of the ways intended use is shown. The FTC Act separately requires that health and result claims be true and backed by evidence.

This guide covers how FDA tells cosmetic claims from drug claims, what FDA says about acid-based “skin peelers” and sun sensitivity, what that means for service ads and for retail peel products, and how results, photos and package prices fit under FTC rules. For the wider treatment menu, see our med spa marketing ideas. For needling treatments often sold alongside peels, see our guide to microneedling clinic marketing. Melasma claims for peels, lasers and skin lightening products are covered in our guide to melasma treatment marketing.

The short version

• Appearance words point to a cosmetic, treatment words point to a drug. Under 21 USC 321(i), a cosmetic is for “cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance.” Under 21 USC 321(g)(1), a product intended to treat disease or affect the structure or function of the body is a drug. FDA’s AHA page gives acne treatments and skin lighteners as examples of drugs.
• Advertising can change what a product is. FDA’s cosmetic or drug page lists claims in labeling, advertising, on the Internet and in other promotional materials as one way a product’s intended use is established.
• Sun sensitivity is a known risk. FDA says AHAs increase skin sensitivity to the sun during use and for up to a week after, and FDA recommends a “Sunburn Alert” statement on cosmetic AHA products.
• FDA connects the more serious reactions to the strongest exfoliation. Its AHA page says serious adverse reactions appear to occur most often with products that cause the greatest degree of exfoliation, such as “skin peelers.” Ads that hide that while promising “zero downtime” leave out a material fact (15 USC 55(a)(1)).
• Results, photos and package prices follow FTC rules. Result claims need evidence, before and after photos are read as typical unless you say otherwise (16 CFR 255.2), and a former price must be real (16 CFR 233.1).

Cosmetic or drug: how FDA draws the line

FDA’s page Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (content current as of September 11, 2024) says whether a product is a cosmetic or a drug “is determined by a product’s intended use.” The statute defines a cosmetic as an article applied to the body “for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance” (21 USC 321(i)). It defines a drug to include “articles intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease” and “articles (other than food) intended to affect the structure or any function of the body” (21 USC 321(g)(1)). A product can be both, and then it must meet the rules for both.

FDA lists ways intended use is established, starting with “claims stated on the product labeling, in advertising, on the Internet, or in other promotional materials.” Among its examples of claims that make a product a drug are claims to “increase or decrease the production of melanin (pigment) in the skin” or to “regenerate cells.” FDA’s page also says the term “cosmeceutical” has no meaning under the law.

FDA’s Alpha Hydroxy Acids page applies this to peels directly. It says AHA products cause exfoliation, the shedding of the surface skin, and that the extent depends on the type and concentration of the acid, its pH and other ingredients. It says some AHA products have been marketed for treating acne, removing scars and lightening discolorations, including products marketed as “skin peelers” that “may contain relatively high concentrations of AHAs or other acids and are designed to remove the outer layer of the skin.” It then says products intended for acne treatment or skin lightening “are considered drugs.”

Wording for peel services and peel products

Two different things get advertised under the name chemical peel, and the rules land differently on each.

1. Peel products you sell. Take-home peel pads, at-home peel kits and a private-label peel line are products sold to the public. The claims on the label, the shelf card, your online shop and your social posts are part of how FDA reads their intended use. Claims to treat acne, fade melasma, lighten dark spots, reduce melanin or regenerate skin cells push a product into drug territory, and a cosmetic sold with drug claims can be an unapproved drug. Our guide to private-label skincare in a practice covers the product side in more detail.
2. The peel service in your office. A peel done by your clinician is a service, and an ad for it is still an advertisement under the FTC Act. A claim that a peel series “clears acne” or “removes melasma” is a health claim that needs competent and reliable scientific evidence for that use, at the strength and number of sessions you offer, as the FTC Health Products Compliance Guidance explains. Under 15 USC 52 and 55, a false advertisement for a drug, device or cosmetic is unlawful, and whether an ad is misleading includes what it fails to reveal.

Practical wording that stays on the appearance side for both: “improves the look of skin texture and tone,” “for a smoother, brighter-looking complexion,” “helps the look of fine lines.” If you want to talk about acne, pigment disorders or scars, the ad is about treating a condition. Name the condition only on pages where a licensed clinician evaluates the patient, keep the claim to what the evidence for that treatment supports, and do not sell a retail product with the same claim unless it is a drug marketed under the drug rules.

Sun sensitivity, downtime and risk disclosure

FDA’s 2005 guidance on AHA labeling says FDA “has considered evidence that suggests that topically applied cosmetic products containing alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) as ingredients may increase the sensitivity of skin to the sun while the products are used and for up to a week after use is stopped.” It recommends that cosmetic AHA products carry this statement:

FDA’s AHA page reports 114 adverse dermatologic experience reports for AHA skin care products between 1992 and February 2004, including burning, dermatitis or rash, swelling, pigmentary changes, blisters and chemical burns, and says the more serious reactions appear to occur most often with “skin peelers.” FDA’s Beta Hydroxy Acids page (salicylic acid is the BHA FDA names as most common in cosmetics) advises a patch test, stopping use and consulting a physician if irritation or prolonged stinging occurs, avoiding BHA products on infants and children, and sun protection.

For ads, that means: do not promise “no downtime”, “no peeling” or “safe for everyone.” Say peeling, redness and sun sensitivity can follow a peel, and put aftercare and sun protection on the service page and the booking confirmation. If you retail AHA products, check that each one carries the Sunburn Alert or equivalent wording, and that your shop listing does not leave it off.

One more point from FDA’s AHA page: the ingredient declaration requirement under the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act does not apply to products used exclusively by professionals. A professional peel may not list its acids or strength on the bottle. Get the ingredient and strength information from the supplier in writing before you describe a peel’s strength or depth in an ad.

Results, photos and peel packages

Under 16 CFR 255.2(a), an ad using consumer endorsements is read as representing that the product or service is effective for the purpose shown, and the advertiser needs substantiation as if it had made the claim directly. Under 16 CFR 255.2(b), an endorsement about a central attribute is likely to be read as representative of what consumers generally achieve, unless the ad clearly and conspicuously discloses the generally expected performance. For peel content:

• Use real patients with written permission, the same lighting and angle in both photos, and no filters or retouching of the treated skin.
• Show how many peels and how long after the last one, and say results vary.
• Do not post a before and after for acne or pigment as a cosmetic “glow” result; the photo itself makes the treatment claim.
• Do not caption a result with something you could not claim yourself, such as “zero peeling.”

For packages, say how many peels are included, at what intervals, and that the number a patient needs depends on the assessment. A “was $600, now $399” series price needs a former price you actually offered in good faith for a reasonably substantial period of time (16 CFR 233.1(a)). See our guides to was and now price claims and patient testimonials and before-and-after photos.

An example (made up)

This illustration is invented to show how the rules fit together. A med spa posts: “Our medical-grade peel CURES acne and ERASES melasma in 3 sessions. Zero downtime, safe for all skin types! Take home our cosmeceutical peel pads for $49 and keep dark spots gone for good. Was $900, now $450 for a series.”

Fixes: “cures acne” and “erases melasma” are treatment claims the med spa has no evidence for at that number of sessions; the service ad moves to appearance wording, and acne care goes on a clinician-led page with claims kept to what the evidence supports. “Zero downtime” and “safe for all skin types” go; the post says peeling, redness and sun sensitivity can follow. The take-home pads lose “keep dark spots gone”, a claim to affect pigment that FDA lists as a drug claim, and “cosmeceutical”, a term FDA says has no meaning under the law; the listing shows the Sunburn Alert. The $900 former price goes unless the series was actually offered at that price for a real period.

Checklist

• Every retail peel product’s label, shelf card, shop listing and post uses appearance claims only, unless the product is a drug marketed under the drug rules.
• No claims to treat acne, scars or melasma, lighten skin, change melanin or regenerate cells for cosmetic products (21 USC 321(g)(1); FDA cosmetic or drug page).
• Service ads that name a condition are backed by evidence for that treatment at the strength and sessions offered (15 USC 45, 52; FTC guidance).
• No “no downtime”, “no peeling” or “safe for all skin types”; peeling, redness and sun sensitivity are disclosed (15 USC 55(a)(1)).
• Retail AHA products carry the Sunburn Alert or equivalent; aftercare covers sun protection for a week after.
• Strength or depth claims are based on written supplier information.
• Before and after content is real, consented, unretouched, dated and labeled with typical results (16 CFR 255.2).
• Package prices state sessions and intervals; former prices were real (16 CFR 233.1).
• Who may perform each peel depth checked against your own state’s rules.

How we help

We build service pages and campaigns for med spas and dermatology practices with treatment and product claims checked against the sources above: website design, healthcare SEO for treatment searches, and lead generation campaigns. We do not give legal opinions on product status or scope of practice, and we are not a law firm.

Sources

• FDA: Alpha Hydroxy Acids (content current as of November 22, 2022)
• FDA: Beta Hydroxy Acids (content current as of February 25, 2022)
• FDA: Guidance for Industry: Labeling for Cosmetics Containing Alpha Hydroxy Acids (January 2005)
• FDA: Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (or Is It Soap?) (content current as of September 11, 2024)
• 21 USC 321: Definitions (subsections (g)(1) and (i))
• 15 USC 45: Unfair methods of competition unlawful
• 15 USC 52: Dissemination of false advertisements
• 15 USC 55: Additional definitions
• FTC: Health Products Compliance Guidance (December 2022)
• 16 CFR 255.2: Consumer endorsements
• 16 CFR 233.1: Former price comparisons

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