{"id":11138,"date":"2025-04-26T13:42:34","date_gmt":"2025-04-26T12:42:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/?p=11138"},"modified":"2025-05-15T14:01:59","modified_gmt":"2025-05-15T13:01:59","slug":"bronhomin-drops-how-a-manipulative-advertisement-tripled-the-products-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/2025\/04\/26\/bronhomin-drops-how-a-manipulative-advertisement-tripled-the-products-price\/","title":{"rendered":"Bronhomin Drops: How a Manipulative Advertisement Tripled the Product\u2019s Price"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Original article<\/em><\/a> (in Serbian) was published on 27\/8\/2024; Author: Teodora Koledin<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you recently come across an ad<\/a> for the so-called \u201canti-nicotine bioactivator\u201d Bronhomin? Regardless of whether you’ve encountered it before, this is another clear example of deceptive advertising. Tragac thoroughly analyzed the entire promotional text for these smoking cessation drops and identified numerous inconsistencies.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To begin with, it\u2019s worth noting that manipulative ads of this type often rely on endorsements from questionable medical professionals. In this case, the so-called pulmonologist and narcologist Milan Licic<\/strong> is presented as the inventor of Bronhomin, and the entire ad is based on his alleged professional experience. However, this person does not exist<\/strong>. The photo of the supposed specialist<\/a> was found<\/a> on a stock photo website, and no licensed doctor by that name appears in the official medical registry<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of the consumers whose \u201ctestimonials\u201d are featured in the advertisement are completely fictional<\/strong>, and their photos were also taken from various stock photo databases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Miloc Jovanovic<\/a> (64) from Belgrade: \u201cQuit smoking after the first drop\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sofija Stankovic<\/a> (66) from Kragujevac: \u201cNow rides a bike instead of smoking\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robert Jovanovic<\/a> (62) from Belgrade: \u201cSpecial because he started smoking at the age of forty\u201d
Vasilj Tadic<\/a> (61) from Kragujevac: \u201cHis father benefited the most\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

About nonexistent institutes and research that \u201cprove\u201d effectiveness<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The advertisement claims that the effectiveness of this product has been \u201cscientifically proven\u201d and studied by as many as 14 research institutes<\/strong> from around the world. Among the named organizations are the American Society for Clean Lunges and the Australian Institute of Taping, both of which, like the others mentioned, do not exist. The supposed inventor, Milan Licic, is claimed to be the recipient of the \u201cBiochemical Discovery of the Year<\/strong>\u201d award, but no relevant information about such an award can be found online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are also no additional details about the alleged \u201cclinical trials conducted on 120,000 people<\/strong>\u201d, which supposedly prove the effectiveness of the drops even in \u201chopeless cases\u201d. Apart from mentioning the study, the ad provides no evidence of its existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The imaginary specialist in the advertisement also claims that \u201cevery tobacco product contains nicotine\u201d and that nicotine \u201ckills<\/strong>\u201d. This statement is misleading<\/strong>. While nicotine is a highly addictive<\/strong> substance, it is not usually the direct cause of death among smokers. To overdose fatally on nicotine, a person would need to smoke a very large number of cigarettes in a short time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each cigarette delivers<\/a> between 1.1 and 1.8 milligrams of nicotine to the body, which amounts to 22 to 36 milligrams per pack. Newer studies suggest<\/a> that more than 500 milligrams<\/strong> of nicotine would be required for a lethal overdose. As stated on the website of the UK’s National Health Service<\/a>: \u201cNicotine itself does not cause cancer, lung disease, heart disease, or stroke and has been used safely for many years in medications that help people stop smoking\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What can we learn from the ingredients and packaging of Bronhomin?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you look closely at the packaging<\/a> of Bronhomin shown near the end of the ad, you\u2019ll notice the ingredients <\/strong>of these drops, which are marketed as a smoking cessation therapy. The ad claims that the ingredients are \u201c100% natural\u201d, but does not specify what they are. However, the Bronhomin packaging lists the following: plantain, oregano, ginger, lungwort, mullein, elecampane, and thyme. Below the photo of the box in the ad, the promotional price is also shown – with a 65% discount<\/strong>, the drops can be purchased for just 1,490 dinars<\/strong>, whereas the regular price is 4,900 dinars<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We researched the ingredients in Bronhomin and found drops with the exact same composition and name<\/strong>, but sold in different packaging. They are available at the online health food store \u201cBioline<\/a>\u201d for 520 dinars<\/strong>. The manufacturer is ZokiSfood<\/strong>, or more specifically, the company \u201cFruit and Vegetable Processing\u201d from Vladicin Han, run by Jadranka and Zoran Stojiljkovic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On the ZokiSfood<\/a> website, their product Bronhomin<\/a> can indeed be found, but there are no fairy tales<\/strong> about an \u201canti-nicotine bioactivator\u201d that will help you lose the urge to smoke in 24 hours and completely cleanse your lungs in three weeks. It simply states that it is a product that \u201ccontributes to the normal function of the respiratory tract<\/strong>\u201d. On the health food store website, selling it for a third of the price<\/strong> compared to the creators of the misleading advertisement, the drops are described as \u201csupporting respiratory health and easing breathing\u201d. There is no mention of smoking cessation<\/strong> or total lung cleansing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One detail visible on the Bronhomin packaging used in the manipulative advertisement confirms that this is the same product in different packaging<\/strong> and with different pricing. The packaging in the manipulative advertisement displays the \u201cregistration number in the Ministry of Health database of the Republic of Serbia\u201d. It is exactly the same number<\/strong> listed on the ZokiSfood site in the product description under the same name – 21813\/2022 dated November 22, 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who is selling the manipulatively advertised Bronhomin?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We found the same Bronhomin, in the identical bottle and box as shown in the deceptive ad, on the website \u201cBio Zdravlje\u201d, which features an entire online store<\/a> of various \u201cremedies\u201d for respiratory issues, digestion, alcoholism, joints, obesity, diabetes, and blood vessels. The website<\/a> lists the registration number of the company behind it, and by checking the Serbian Business Registers Agency, it was easy to confirm that the seller is Bio Svet d.o.o.<\/strong> founded in 2022. The company is registered in Vozdovac, Belgrade, and the listed<\/a> director is Tadija Milanovic<\/strong>, who is also one of the two owners of the company<\/a> ISL Group d.o.o.<\/strong> registered for \u201ccall center activities<\/strong>\u201d. The official Bio Svet website<\/a> also features reviews<\/a> from alleged satisfied partners, illustrated with stock<\/a> model photos. It also states that \u201cBio Zdravlje\u201d is a brand of this company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A share in Bio Svet is also held by entrepreneur Nikola Zivkovic<\/strong>, who is the owner of the retail business<\/a> PR ADFINITUM<\/strong>, specializing in online retail<\/strong>. Both Milanovic and Zivkovic are also listed as owners of a company called Bio Svijet<\/strong>, registered<\/a> in Ugljevik, in Bosnia and Herzegovina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Bio Svet\u2019s social media, Facebook<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>, the main product being promoted is the alleged weight loss remedy Fitopil, which is advertised using problematic and misogynistic language<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bronhomin is also available from other questionable online stores, which Tragac has previously identified as promoting unverified remedies (1<\/a>, 2<\/a>, 3<\/a>, 4<\/a>, 5<\/a>, 6<\/a>).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Original article (in Serbian) was published on 27\/8\/2024; Author: Teodora Koledin Have you recently come across an ad for the so-called \u201canti-nicotine bioactivator\u201d Bronhomin? Regardless of whether you’ve encountered it before, this is another clear example of deceptive advertising. Tragac thoroughly analyzed the entire promotional text for these smoking cessation drops and identified numerous inconsistencies. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":11140,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[316],"tags":[185,23,547,284,28,574],"class_list":["post-11138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fact-checks","tag-fraud","tag-health","tag-hoax","tag-medicine","tag-serbia","tag-smoking"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11138"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11138\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11141,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11138\/revisions\/11141"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seecheck.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}