Stephen Barrett has accused the company of making false claims regarding its products' therapeutic effects, and reports legal problems the company has faced from the FDA and state of California regarding false medical claims. However, none of them were substantiated, and the company has never been directed to pay any fines for such wrong doings. In addition, Barret has said that Sunrider distributors do not have the proper qualifications to advise their customers about the product. However, since the products are foods, there are actually no qualifications needed to make suggestions for product use. The company has instructed distributors to avoid medical claims.