Frequently Asked Questions

Many supplement review websites use subjective measurements to rate products. Other websites describe how well a product seems to work from an individual's point of view. The Supplement Database uses objective measurements to rate supplements. These objective measurements come from 988 peer-reviewed research articles. The conclusions from these studies, along with other product data, are the only factors used to rate supplements. Subjective measurements such as how well a blogger thinks the supplement works, how good someone thinks it tastes, or how cool a manufacturer's website is are all irrelevant in the database's ratings. Read more: What is the purpose of the Supplement Database?

The database is a one-person operation. My name is Ken Bendor and I launched this website back in 2019 to provide the objective supplement reviews based on peer-reviewed research articles.

Supplement ingredients form the foundation of the database. Ingredients include amino acids, proteins, plant extracts, vitamins, and minerals. The database includes 230 ingredients in 23 categories. Manufacturers combine multiple ingredients to form a supplement product. Supplement products include pre-workouts, sleep aids, and immune system boosters. The database includes 4,860 products in 16 categories. An ingredient's rating comes from conclusions found in scientific journal articles. A product's rating is derived from the ingredients it's made up of.

The database uses conclusions from 988 research articles to rate supplement ingredients. These research articles test ingredients on a specific claim. For example, creatine monohydrate's ability to increase strength, or, whey protein's ability to reduce muscle damage. Research articles generally come to one of three conclusions: 1) the supplement did not deliver on the claim, or, 2) the supplement delivered on a claim in certain circumstances, or, 3) the supplement was able to significantly deliver on the claim. The database tabulates conclusions from multiple research articles to give ingredients both an overall effectiveness rating and a claim specific rating. Supplement products are rated based on their ingredients' ratings (more below).

Please use the contact page to submit any listing requests. If you're requesting the inclusion of a product, please include the website that provides a clear product label of all ingredients in the message body.

No, none of the products listed or rated by the database required an inclusion fee. The only requirement for a product to get listed in the database is to have a publicly available and readable ingredient listing.

The database makes money through advertising placements by Google Adsense. These placements are automatic and do not influence supplement product ratings. See the privacy policy for more information.

If you have a question not covered below, please use the contact page.