2020
March
Zen by De Novo Nutrition Review
Zen is a sleep aid manufactured by De Novo Nutrition. It ranks 53 out of 201 sleep aids and earned an overall thumbs-up recommendation based on seven factors including nutrition label transparency, ingredients, dosing, claims, research rating, and ranking.
Thumbs-up
Zen earned a thumbs-up 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 |
Vote Statistics
1 to 5 Star Rating Votes Votes for products are cast in two ways. First, visitors can rate each product with a 1 to 5 star rating. These votes are cast on a product's rating page (this page - below).
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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 Zen, or the products listed in the table below. The number next to the thumb up is how many votes Zen won; the number next to the thumb down is how many votes it lost to the other product.
There have been no comparison votes cast for Zen.
Table of Contents
Zen Simple Report
Zen Detailed Report
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.
Effectiveness Rating
Zen earned a thumbs-up in this category because its effectiveness rating is 2.35. A product's effectiveness rating must be at least 1.5 to receive a thumbs-up in this area. This effectiveness rating means Zen 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.
Ingredients
Zen earned a thumbs-up in this category because it contains 0% 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.
Zen contains:
- unrated ingredients: 1 (the database does not contain information on these ingredients)
- total ingredients: 5
The following table lists all ingredients found in this product as well as their effectiveness ratings and amounts (if listed).
| Ingredient | Effectiveness Rating |
|---|---|
| Lemon Balm Extract 300mg | 2.9 out of 3 |
| Bacopa Monnieri 300mg | 2.5 out of 3 |
| Melatonin 2.5mg | 2.1 out of 3 |
| 5-HTP 100mg | 1.9 out of 3 |
| Sceletium Tortuosum* | not rated |
| Product Effectiveness Rating | 2.35 |
* These ingredients are not included in the Supplement Database.
Note: These ingredients are accurate as of March 29, 2020.
Ingredient Dosing
Zen earned a thumbs-down in this category because 67% 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.
Zen Dosing Compared to Research
This section is a comparison of ingredient doses found in Zen 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 |
|---|---|
| Bacopa Monnieri 300mg | 125mg - 300mg |
| Lemon Balm Extract 0.3g | 0.08g - 9g |
| 5-HTP 100mg | 750mg - 900mg |
Zen Dosing Compared to Other Products
This section is a comparison of ingredient doses found in Zen 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Bacopa Monnieri 0.3g | 0.21g | 0g - 1g |
| Lemon Balm Extract 300mg | 215.49mg | 25mg - 800mg |
| 5-HTP 100mg | 123.69mg | 1mg - 500mg |
| Sceletium Tortuosum 0.03g | 0.14g | 0.01g - 1g |
| Melatonin 0g | 0.04g | 0g - 4g |
Claims
Zen earned a thumbs-down in this category because 57% 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).
Zen is extremely effective at:
Zen is moderately effective at:
Research Rating
Zen earned a thumbs-down in this category because its research rating is 35. A product's research rating must be at least 60 to receive a thumbs-up in this area.
A research rating of 35 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.
Nutrition Label and Ingredient Transparency
Zen 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.
Zen contains:
- total ingredients: 5
- ingredients with amounts listed: 5
- ingredients without amounts listed: 0
- percent of ingredient amounts disclosed: 100%
Product Label
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.
Ranking Within Category
Zen earned a thumbs-up in this category because it ranks 53 out of 201 in the sleep aid category (top third). A product must be ranked in the top two-thirds of its category to receive a thumbs-up in this area.
Zen ranks 53 out of 201 in the Sleep Aids category and 1,076 out of 5,011 in the entire database. The table below lists comparisons with similarly ranked sleep aid. Click on a link for an in-depth comparison between the two.
| Product Comparison |
|---|
| Zen vs ZEN R.E.M. |
| Zen vs Night Shift |
| Zen vs Animal PM |
| Zen vs Social PM Burn |
| Zen vs God Status Labz Hypnos |
See more comparisons: Is Zen the best sleep aid?
Summary
| Graded Area | Reason |
|---|---|
| Effectiveness Rating | rating is greater or equal to the required 1.5 |
| Ingredients | more 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 top two thirds of category |
| Overall Recommendation | received a thumbs up in the majority of areas |
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