Ananova:

Dettol has been told to put the lid down on its loo seat advert.

A commercial claiming chopping boards harboured 50 times more bacteria than loo seats broke advertising rules, the advertising regulator has ruled.

The advert also exaggerated the dangers posed by the bacteria on chopping boards, the Advertising Standards Authority ruled.

After an investigation, the watchdog said the firm behind the commercial could not stand up its claims and should not show the Dettol advert again.

Evidence provided by Reckitt Benckiser, the firm behind the Dettol brand, was based on a 2004 study of just five Hertfordshire households.

Each of those households included a child under the age of three.

The ASA was not convinced the hygiene conditions in the five houses studied were representative of most households.

"We concluded that the evidence was not robust enough to support the claim," the watchdog said.

In a statement, Reckitt Benckiser said it was disappointed with the ASA's decision.

"The comparison was made to highlight the very high levels of bacteria present in household chopping boards which are routinely used for a wide variety of food preparation activities.

"It is well known that meats such as chicken, for example, can be high in bacteria and that very few households use different boards for every task, but usually will wipe a board down between tasks." Facts And Figures

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