Core 9 by Faction Labs Review

2020 July

Core 9

Intra-Workout Supplements, Faction Labs 0 Comments 0 Votes Updated July 17, 2020

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Core 9 is an intra-workout supplement manufactured by Faction Labs. It ranks 238 out of 339 intra-workout supplements and earned an overall thumbs-down recommendation based on seven factors including nutrition label transparency, ingredients, dosing, claims, research rating, and ranking.

Core 9 earned a thumbs-down recommendation. This recommendation is based on the criteria listed below. To earn an overall thumbs-up recommendation, a product must earn a thumbs-up in at least four of the seven areas below. Click on a graded area for an in-depth analysis.

Graded Area	Thumb Up or Down
Effectiveness Rating
Ingredients
Ingredient Dosing
Claims
Research Rating
Nutrition Label Transparency
Ranking Within Category
Overall Recommendation

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Comparison Votes Visitors can also vote on which product works better on comparison pages. Comparison pages are a side-by-side analysis between two supplement products. The votes below illustrate whether visitors prefer Core 9, or the products listed in the table below. The number next to the thumb up is how many votes Core 9 won; the number next to the thumb down is how many votes it lost to the other product.

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1. Simple Report
2. Detailed Report
   • Effectiveness Rating
   • Ingredients
   • Ingredient Articles
   • Ingredient Dosing
   • Claims
   • Research Rating
   • Nutrition Label Transparency
   • Fat Content Transparency
   • Product Label
3. Ranking Within Category
4. Summary
5. Comments

• Product Name: Core 9
• Manufacturer: Faction Labs
• Manufacturer Website: Faction Labs's Homepage
• Manufacturer Social Media:
• Supplement Category: Intra-Workout Supplements
• Serving Size: 1 scoop (11g)
• Effectiveness Rating: 1.87 out of 3
• Number of Ingredients: 28
• Research Rating: 23 (above 60 indicates sufficient research)
• Nutrition Label Transparency Score: 100%
• Ranking within Intra-Workout Supplements: 238 out of 339 (bottom third within category)
• Ranking within all Supplement Products: 3,825 out of 5,326 (middle third of all products)

The detailed report provides an in-depth analysis of the product's rating. In addition to showing ratings for each area, this report also provides the required criteria for a thumbs-up in each section.

Core 9 earned a thumbs-up in this category because its effectiveness rating is 1.87. A product's effectiveness rating must be at least 1.5 to receive a thumbs-up in this area. This effectiveness rating means Core 9 is made up of a mix of both high and low-quality ingredients and may lead to some positive results.

This category illustrates how well a product works based on what the research says about its ingredients. Researchers conduct studies on supplement ingredients to gauge effectiveness. The database grades products on how effective their ingredients are. The effectiveness rating of supplement products is evaluated on a 3 point scale: 3.0 is the most effective, 1.0 is the least effective.

Core 9 earned a thumbs-down in this category because it contains 50% extremely and/or moderately effective ingredients. A product must contain at least 75% extremely and/or moderately effective ingredients to receive a thumbs-up in this area.

This category rates a product's ingredient makeup. A product should contain mostly extremely and/or moderately effective ingredients with little or no ineffective ones. The database categorizes ingredients as extremely, moderately, or ineffective based on conclusions from research articles.

Core 9 contains:

• extremely effective ingredients: 5
• moderately effective ingredients: 9
• ineffective ingredients: 7
• unrated ingredients: 7 (the database does not contain information on these ingredients)
• total ingredients: 28

The following table lists all ingredients found in this product as well as their effectiveness ratings and amounts (if listed).

Ingredient	Effectiveness Rating
L-Histidine 211mg	3 out of 3
Grape Seed Extract 50mg	3 out of 3
Cissus Quadrangularis 25mg	3 out of 3
Potassium Chloride 29mg	2.7 out of 3
Ashwagandha 125mg	2.5 out of 3
Vitamin B1 10mg	2.3 out of 3
L-Tryptophan 252mg	2.2 out of 3
Selenium 10mcg	2 out of 3
Sodium 18mg	1.9 out of 3
Branched Chain Amino Acids 3.29g	1.9 out of 3
Rhodiola Rosea 50mg	1.8 out of 3
Zinc 5mg	1.8 out of 3
L-Phenylalanine 884mg	1.7 out of 3
Vitamin B6 5mg	1.5 out of 3
Acetyl L-Tyrosine 250mg	1.3 out of 3
Vitamin C 200mg	1.3 out of 3
Calcium Citrate 16mg	1.3 out of 3
Vitamin B3 10mg	1 out of 3
Vitamin B5 7.5mg	1 out of 3
Vitamin B2 5mg	1 out of 3
Vitamin B12 250mcg	1 out of 3
L-Lysine*	not rated
L-Threonine*	not rated
L-Methionine*	not rated
Schisandra Extract*	not rated
Astragin*	not rated
Sodium Chloride*	not rated
Magnesium Citrate*	not rated
Product Effectiveness Rating	1.87

* These ingredients are not included in the Supplement Database.

Note: These ingredients are accurate as of July 17, 2020.

Ingredient Articles

Core 9 earned a thumbs-down in this category because 13% of its ingredients are dosed within the effective range. Seventy-five (75)% of product's ingredients must be dosed within the effective range to receive a thumbs-up in this area.

This category compares a product's ingredient dosing to effective doses found in research articles and doses used in other products. When researchers study the efficacy of supplement ingredients, they use specific doses. Manufacturers should create products with ingredient doses that fall within established effective ranges.

Core 9 Dosing Compared to Research

This section is a comparison of ingredient doses found in Core 9 to amounts used in research articles. The first column contains the name of the ingredient as well as the amount. The second column contains the range of effective doses for that ingredient. Note: not all ingredients in the database contain dosing information; only ingredients with scientific dosing information are included in this analysis.

A green checkmark is shown if the ingredient amount falls within the effective range.

A down arrow is shown if an ingredient amount is lower than the effective range.

Ingredient & Amount	Effective Range
Branched Chain Amino Acids 3.29g	1.22g - 29.2g
Phenylalanine 0.884g	3g
Histidine 0.211g	4g
Ashwagandha Extract (Withania Somnifera) 0.125g	0.5g - 1.002g
Golden Root Extract - Rhodiola 0.05g	0.2g - 2g
Cissus Quadrangularis 0.025g	3.2g
Vitamin B6 5mg	20mg
Potassium 0.029g	3g

Core 9 Dosing Compared to Other Products

This section is a comparison of ingredient doses found in Core 9 to amounts used in other products. The first column displays the ingredient and amount. The second column displays the average amount of the ingredient found across all products in the database. The final column displays the range found across all products in the database.

An orange up or down arrow is shown if the ingredient amount is higher or lower than the average.

An equal sign is shown if the ingredient amount is equal to the average.

Ingredient & Amount	Average	Range
Sodium 0.02g	0.19g	0g - 45g
Branched Chain Amino Acids 3.29g	4.74g	0g - 20g
Lysine 0.98g	0.76g	0.03g - 3g
Phenylalanine 0.88g	47.06g	0.01g - 10000g
Threonine 0.76g	0.6g	0g - 2g
Methionine 0.41g	0.21g	0g - 1g
Tryptophan 0.25g	0.2g	0g - 4.5g
Histidine 0.21g	0.19g	0g - 2g
Tyrosine 0.25g	0.8g	0g - 5.5g
Ashwagandha Extract (Withania Somnifera) 0.13g	0.49g	0g - 62.5g
Schisandra Extract 100mg	217.77mg	2.5mg - 600mg
Grape Seed Extract 0.05g	0.16g	0g - 1.2g
Golden Root Extract - Rhodiola 50mg	190.9mg	5mg - 680mg
AstraGin 50mg	42.34mg	5mg - 750mg
Cissus Quadrangularis 0.03g	0.42g	0.03g - 3.2g
Selenium 10mcg	90mcg	0mcg - 400mcg
Vitamin C 0.2g	0.58g	0g - 250g
Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) 10mg	11.63mg	0mg - 250mg
Niacin 10mg	26.31mg	0mg - 500mg
Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid) 7.5mg	23.54mg	0mg - 500mg
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) 5mg	7.27mg	0.12mg - 100mg
Vitamin B6 0.01g	0.01g	0g - 1.7g
Zinc 0.01g	0.03g	0g - 3.12g
Vitamin B12 0g	0.02g	0g - 15g
Sodium Chloride 0.05g	0.2g	0.01g - 1.38g
Potassium 0.03g	0.12g	0g - 2.01g
Calcium 0.02g	0.11g	0g - 4g
Magnesium Citrate 0.01g	0.2g	0.01g - 1.34g

Core 9 earned a thumbs-down in this category because 70% of its claims are rated as either extremely or moderately effective. Seventy-five (75)% of a product's claims must be rated as extremely or moderately effective to receive a thumbs-up in this area.

The product’s effectiveness rating is an overall picture of how well a product does or doesn't work. Individual studies research an ingredient's effects on certain claims. For example: does creatine monohydrate increase strength, or does beta alanine improve running performance?

The Supplement Database compiles the conclusions of these studies, and based on a product's ingredient makeup, calculates how well a product does on various claims. The claims below are organized by effectiveness (extremely, moderately, ineffective).

Core 9 earned a thumbs-down in this category because its research rating is 23. A product's research rating must be at least 60 to receive a thumbs-up in this area.

A research rating of 23 means there is an insufficient amount of research on the product's ingredients to ensure its effectiveness rating is valid.

The research rating is a measure of how much research has been conducted on a product's ingredient makeup. Manufacturers often rely on ingredients without adequate research backing. They may do this to compete with other products that are already using poorly researched ingredients. They may also only use a very small amount of cherry-picked research as a poor justification to use certain ingredients.

The amount of research contained in the database on a product's ingredients determines its research rating. Products with higher ratings are made up of thoroughly researched ingredients.

Core 9 earned a thumbs-up in this category because its discloses 100% of its ingredient amounts. A product must disclose all ingredient amounts to receive a thumbs-up in this area.

Nutrition label transparency refers to how many ingredients are listed with amounts on the product label. Many supplement manufacturers hide ingredient amounts under the guise of great-sounding proprietary blends such as "Maximum Muscular Size Enhancer" or "Anabolic Cell Strength Matrix."

When manufacturers use proprietary blends, they can hide ingredient amounts making it difficult for consumers to know whether a product is effective.

Core 9 contains:

• total ingredients: 28
• ingredients with amounts listed: 28
• ingredients without amounts listed: 0
• percent of ingredient amounts disclosed: 100%

The label below was generated from the information contained in the database about the product's ingredients and amounts. Actual product labels may differ in appearance.

Core 9 earned a thumbs-down in this category because it ranks 238 out of 339 in the intra-workout supplement category (bottom third). A product must be ranked in the top two-thirds of its category to receive a thumbs-up in this area.

Core 9 ranks 238 out of 339 in the Intra-Workout Supplements category and 3,825 out of 5,326 in the entire database. The table below lists comparisons with similarly ranked intra-workout supplement. Click on a link for an in-depth comparison between the two.

Product Comparison
Core 9 vs 1st Phorm Essential Amino Acids
Core 9 vs Electrolyte Endurance Powder
Core 9 vs Amino Sauce
Core 9 vs Electrolytes XL
Core 9 vs Electrolytes

See more comparisons: Is Core 9 the best intra-workout supplement?

Summary

Graded Area	Reason
Effectiveness Rating	rating is greater or equal to the required 1.5
Ingredients	less than 75% of ingredients are rated as effective
Ingredient Dosing	less than 75% of ingredients are dosed properly
Claims	less than 75% of claims are rated as effective
Research Rating	research rating is lower than the required 60
Nutrition Label Transparency	discloses all ingredient amounts on label
Ranking Within Category	ranks in the bottom third of category
Overall Recommendation	received a thumbs down in the majority of areas