Attorney General Kris Mayes, along with 35 other attorneys general from across the United States, has urged Meta to take stronger action against misleading pharmaceutical and wellness advertisements on its platforms, Instagram and Facebook. The coalition is specifically concerned about the increase in AI-generated weight loss ads, which they say often appear during the holiday season and new year when discussions about body image are more common.
“Meta has a responsibility to take down these clearly fraudulent ads. We’re simply urging them to enforce their own policies and take common-sense steps against misleading and dangerous AI-generated weight loss content,” said Attorney General Mayes.
The group points out that GLP-1 weight loss drugs have become much more popular recently, leading to a surge in ads for these medications—many of which are not approved by the FDA or are compounded versions. Companies are using Meta’s advertising tools to run thousands of such ads directly targeting consumers.
Although Meta already has rules regarding pharmaceutical and health-related advertisements—including requirements for advertisers to provide information about drug effectiveness and affordability, target only adults, and avoid promoting unhealthy body images—the attorneys general argue that enforcement is lacking. They note that many ads exploit insecurities about appearance by promoting rapid weight loss as a means to achieve confidence or social acceptance rather than focusing on health.
Some of these advertisements feature unlabeled AI-generated content such as fake before-and-after photos or fabricated spokespeople. For example, one ad reportedly showed an AI-created model claiming a 208-pound weight loss in three weeks; others used computer-generated law enforcement officers or healthcare professionals to lend credibility to their claims.
In their letter, the attorneys general ask Meta to strengthen its policies by restricting prescription drug ads in the U.S. to only those that have FDA approval, requiring clear disclosure of risks associated with weight loss products, prohibiting use of AI-generated content in such ads, improving labeling and detection of AI-created material, and providing users with safety resources when searching for weight loss products.
Attorneys general from states including North Carolina, Connecticut, Ohio, Pennsylvania, California, New York, Texas (not listed), Washington state and several others joined Mayes in signing the letter addressed to Meta.
A copy of the letter can be found online.
