Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy CEO Azrul Mohd Khalib said the prohibition, which is included in MCMC’s 2022 Content Code, was overdue given the proliferation of products exploiting religious beliefs and scientific ignorance.

“We have products that clearly exploit a section of society which is susceptible to religious arguments when making decisions concerning their health and the health of their family members,” Azrul told FMT.

“There is a large number of people living with serious and chronic illnesses, such as cancer and diabetes, who need proper medical treatment but are instead lured away by unproven and baseless claims.”

On Wednesday, Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Content Forum executive director Mediha Mahmood said the code would be enforced by the end of this year.

She said the prohibition applied to the use of religious elements of all faiths and that the objective was to prevent the use of religion as a marketing gimmick.

Azrul said the code was essential in preventing the sale of products claiming to cure cancer or diabetes through incantations.

He said such products often caused people to delay proper treatment and care.

But he also said he believed people would continue to purchase such products despite the restriction since religious belief was deeply rooted in Malaysian society.

The Islamic Medical Association of Malaysia (Imam) has also welcomed MCMC’s move, saying in a statement that it would benefit Muslim consumers.

It said MCMC’s decision was timely because social media was being widely used to promote misconceptions and spread confusion.

It urged the relevant authorities to provide comprehensive guidelines and content evaluation to Muslim manufacturers and advertisers to prevent the spread of misinformation.

“Such guidelines would certainly help advertisers to provide more accurate, suitable and truthful information about their products,” it said.