What you can and can’t say about baby products on Instagram
Baby ads are held to the strictest rules there are. Some products can’t be advertised at all.
- Change before it runsInfant formula rules
“Our first infant formula, link in bio.”
Flagged by this rulebook
- Fine to say
“It’s what we use at bath time.”
- Change before it runsCAP 12
“It cured her colic in two days.”
Flagged by this rulebook
- Fine to say
“#ad Our bath time routine”
Verdicts from Affilo’s claims check and this playbook’s rulebook.
Say it’s an ad, up front
Paid or on commission, the post is an ad, and people have to know that before they tap or read on.
- Change before it runs
“Our bath time saviour #gifted”
Flagged by the #ad check · CAP 2
- Change before it runs
“Couldn’t do nights without this #sp”
Flagged by the #ad check · CAP 2
- Fine to say
“#ad Our bath time routine”
- Fine to say
“#ad What gets us through the nights”
Put #ad at the start of the caption and turn on Instagram’s paid partnership label too. In Stories, label every frame the product is in.
Infant formula can’t be advertised
Ads for infant formula, for babies under six months, aren’t allowed, and follow-on formula ads mustn’t look like them.
- Change before it runs
“Our first infant formula, link in bio.”
Flagged by this rulebook · Infant formula rules, CAP 15
No medical claims for babies
Colic, teething pain and nappy rash are medical. Only a licensed medicine or approved medical device can claim to treat them.
- Change before it runs
“It cured her colic in two days.”
Flagged by this rulebook · CAP 12
- Change before it runs
“Stops teething pain.”
Flagged by this rulebook · CAP 12
- Fine to say
“It’s what we use at bath time.”
Safety claims need proof
Safe, non-toxic and chemical free are claims. The brand holds the test results that back them, or they come out.
- Change before it runs
“100% safe for newborns.”
Flagged by this rulebook · CAP 3
- Change before it runs
“Completely chemical free.”
Flagged by this rulebook · CAP 3
- Change before it runs
“Midwife recommended.”
Flagged by this rulebook · CAP 3
- Fine to say
“It meets the toy safety standard, it says so on the box.”
Show children safely
Babies and children are shown as they’d really and safely be cared for, and children are never urged to ask for a product.
- Check the evidence
A baby asleep face down beside the product
For your reviewer · CAP 5
- Check the evidence
Telling children to ask their parents for it
For your reviewer · CAP 5
- Fine to say
Show it in use the way the instructions say
Made with AI? Say so
AI-made people, results and testimonials need a label wherever a viewer would take them as real.
- Check the evidence
An AI-made person giving a testimonial, with nothing to say so
For your reviewer · CAP 3
- Check the evidence
A result the product can’t give, made with AI
For your reviewer · CAP 3
- Fine to say
Add a short on-screen line: “Made with AI”.
Start with this rulebook.
Sign up as a brand and these lines go on every product you add, ready to edit. Creators see them with the brief, and every script is read against them when it comes in for review.
Lines creators may not say
- Not allowedInfant formula
- Not allowedColic or teething pain
- Not allowedCures, heals or treats any condition
- Not allowed100% safe
- Not allowedChemical free
- Not allowedMidwife recommended
Lines creators may say
- AllowedWhat we use at bath time
A first pass, not legal advice
This playbook sets out the main rules for ads seen in the UK, as we read them on 7 November 2026. It is a starting point for briefing creators, not legal advice. Check your claims with your compliance lead or a lawyer before an ad runs.
The source rules
As read on 7 November 2026.
- CAP 2CAP Code section 2: recognition of marketing communications (opens in a new tab)
An ad must be obviously identifiable as an ad.
- CAP 3CAP Code section 3: misleading advertising (opens in a new tab)
Evidence for objective claims, testimonials, prices and edited images.
- CAP 5CAP Code section 5: children (opens in a new tab)
How children are shown in ads and how ads speak to them.
- CAP 12CAP Code section 12: medicines, medical devices, health-related and beauty products (opens in a new tab)
Medical claims, and what beauty and health products may say.
- CAP 15CAP Code section 15: food, food supplements and health or nutrition claims (opens in a new tab)
Nutrition claims, health claims and medicinal claims for food.
- Infant formula rulesRegulation (EU) 2016/127 on infant and follow-on formula, as it applies in Great Britain (opens in a new tab)
Infant formula may not be advertised; follow-on formula ads may not look like it.
- Influencer guidanceThe ASA and CMA guide for influencers on making clear that ads are ads (opens in a new tab)
Where #ad goes, and which labels aren’t enough.