Medicine library

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Some records contain detailed evidence; others currently contain only basic identity and regulatory information. Reviewed conclusions appear only when they are available for a specific use and group of people.

Showing 1–31 of 31 records

Creatine monohydrate
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for strength and power output in short, hard efforts
Caffeine (Caffeine anhydrous in supplements; caffeine citrate is an FDA-approved prescription drug for apnea of prematurity (Cafcit, NDA 020793))
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for alertness, and before training or competition for performance
Melatonin (Prolonged-release melatonin is a prescription medicine in the EU as Circadin (EMEA/H/C/000695); in the US the same molecule is an unregulated dietary supplement)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken to fall asleep faster, and to reset the clock after flying
Berberine
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for blood sugar and cholesterol, approved for neither
L-theanine (Sold as Suntheanine and as generic L-theanine)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for calm alertness; no approved health claim in the EU
Glycine (Also labelled aminoacetic acid; glycine 1.5% irrigation solution is an FDA-approved prescription product (NDA 017865 and others))
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken before bed for sleep quality, and for collagen and detox support
Ashwagandha (Sold as standardised root extracts including KSM-66 and Sensoril)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for stress and sleep; legal status differs between countries
St John's wort (Sold as standardised Hypericum perforatum extracts including LI-160, WS 5570 and Ze 117)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Mild to moderate depression — with serious interactions
Beta-alanine (Branded as CarnoSyn; also sold as sustained-release beta-alanine)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken before training for high-intensity work, and for the tingling in pre-workout drinks
Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) and Mitragynine (No approved product. Sold as leaf powder, capsules, extracts and, since about 2023, as concentrated 7-hydroxymitragynine tablets, gummies and sublingual films)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Nothing approved. It is sold in petrol stations and smoke shops, is used by around two million American adults a year, and works partly through the same receptor as morphine
Vitamin D3
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for bones and immunity, tested against most of that and failed
Boron (Sold as boron citrate, boron glycinate, boron aspartate, calcium fructoborate and sodium borate; the absorbed species is boric acid)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
A trace element sold to raise testosterone — whose critical animal toxicity is testicular
Curcumin (Sold as turmeric extract, and as branded complexes including Meriva, BCM-95 and Theracurmin)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for inflammation and joint pain, approved for neither
Inulin (Sold as chicory root fibre, oligofructose, fructooligosaccharide (FOS) or agave inulin; branded ingredients include Orafti and Frutafit)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken to feed gut bacteria and improve digestion
Calcium Carbonate (Tums / Ultra Strength Antacid / Extra Strength Antacid / Caltrate)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Heartburn and indigestion, and topping up dietary calcium
Iodine (Sold as potassium iodide, sodium iodide or kelp extract; potassium iodide is also an FDA-approved over-the-counter drug (iOSAT, NDA 018664))
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for thyroid support and metabolism, often as a kelp supplement
Quercetin
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for allergy and immunity; investigated as a senescent-cell killer
Selenium (Sold as L-selenomethionine, sodium selenite, sodium selenate or selenium-enriched yeast)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken as an antioxidant and for thyroid and immune support
Alpha-lipoic acid (Also called thioctic acid or lipoic acid; sold as racemic ALA or as R-lipoic acid)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for nerve pain in diabetes, for blood sugar, and as a general antioxidant
Resveratrol
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for longevity and heart health, approved for neither
Taurine (2-aminoethanesulfonic acid; the largest consumer route is energy drinks)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken in energy drinks and pre-workout formulas, and increasingly for anti-ageing
Zinc (Sold as zinc gluconate, acetate, picolinate, citrate or oxide; the prescription zinc acetate product for Wilson disease is Galzin)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken at the first sign of a cold, and daily for immune support
Coenzyme Q10 (Ubiquinone (oxidised) and ubiquinol (reduced); also sold as ubidecarenone)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for heart health and energy, and especially by people on statins for muscle aches
Rhodiola rosea (Sold as golden root or arctic root, often as the SHR-5 standardised extract)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for fatigue and mental performance under stress
Muscimol and Ibotenic Acid (Amanita muscaria) (No approved product. Sold in the United States since about 2022 as Amanita muscaria gummies, capsules, chocolates and extracts marketed as legal or nootropic mushrooms)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Nothing. It is the fly agaric mushroom, sold as gummies and chocolate in American smoke shops, and in one Portland analysis the products claiming to contain it did not contain it
Vitamin K2 MK-7 (Menaquinone-7; the dominant branded ingredient in the trial literature is MenaQ7)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken with vitamin D for bone density and to keep calcium out of the arteries
LSA (Ergine) — Morning Glory and Hawaiian Baby Woodrose Seeds (No product. The seeds are sold as garden seed under cultivar names such as Heavenly Blue and Pearly Gates, and as Argyreia nervosa seed)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Nothing. These are garden seeds containing an ergot alkaloid, sold in every seed rack, and the compound in them is not federally controlled
Psyllium husk (Sold as ispaghula husk; the dominant branded product is Metamucil)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for constipation and regularity, and to lower cholesterol
Saffron extract (Sold as affron, Safr'Inside and other standardised Crocus sativus stigma extracts)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Marketed for mood and anxiety
Collagen peptides (Sold as hydrolysed collagen, collagen hydrolysate, gelatin hydrolysate or "specific collagen peptides"; brand ingredients include Verisol, Fortigel and CH-Alpha)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken for skin, joints, hair and nails
Whey protein (Sold as whey concentrate, whey isolate and whey hydrolysate — three processing grades of the same starting material)
Nutritional or plant productDietary supplement; not FDA-approved as a medicineDetailed record
Use listed on the medicine record
Taken after training to build muscle, and generally to hit a daily protein target

Creatine monohydrate

Caffeine (Caffeine anhydrous in supplements; caffeine citrate is an FDA-approved prescription drug for apnea of prematurity (Cafcit, NDA 020793))

Melatonin (Prolonged-release melatonin is a prescription medicine in the EU as Circadin (EMEA/H/C/000695); in the US the same molecule is an unregulated dietary supplement)

Berberine

L-theanine (Sold as Suntheanine and as generic L-theanine)

Glycine (Also labelled aminoacetic acid; glycine 1.5% irrigation solution is an FDA-approved prescription product (NDA 017865 and others))

Ashwagandha (Sold as standardised root extracts including KSM-66 and Sensoril)

St John's wort (Sold as standardised Hypericum perforatum extracts including LI-160, WS 5570 and Ze 117)

Beta-alanine (Branded as CarnoSyn; also sold as sustained-release beta-alanine)

Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) and Mitragynine (No approved product. Sold as leaf powder, capsules, extracts and, since about 2023, as concentrated 7-hydroxymitragynine tablets, gummies and sublingual films)

Vitamin D3

Boron (Sold as boron citrate, boron glycinate, boron aspartate, calcium fructoborate and sodium borate; the absorbed species is boric acid)

Curcumin (Sold as turmeric extract, and as branded complexes including Meriva, BCM-95 and Theracurmin)

Inulin (Sold as chicory root fibre, oligofructose, fructooligosaccharide (FOS) or agave inulin; branded ingredients include Orafti and Frutafit)

Calcium Carbonate (Tums / Ultra Strength Antacid / Extra Strength Antacid / Caltrate)

Iodine (Sold as potassium iodide, sodium iodide or kelp extract; potassium iodide is also an FDA-approved over-the-counter drug (iOSAT, NDA 018664))

Quercetin

Selenium (Sold as L-selenomethionine, sodium selenite, sodium selenate or selenium-enriched yeast)

Alpha-lipoic acid (Also called thioctic acid or lipoic acid; sold as racemic ALA or as R-lipoic acid)

Resveratrol

Taurine (2-aminoethanesulfonic acid; the largest consumer route is energy drinks)

Zinc (Sold as zinc gluconate, acetate, picolinate, citrate or oxide; the prescription zinc acetate product for Wilson disease is Galzin)

Coenzyme Q10 (Ubiquinone (oxidised) and ubiquinol (reduced); also sold as ubidecarenone)

Rhodiola rosea (Sold as golden root or arctic root, often as the SHR-5 standardised extract)

Muscimol and Ibotenic Acid (Amanita muscaria) (No approved product. Sold in the United States since about 2022 as Amanita muscaria gummies, capsules, chocolates and extracts marketed as legal or nootropic mushrooms)

Vitamin K2 MK-7 (Menaquinone-7; the dominant branded ingredient in the trial literature is MenaQ7)

LSA (Ergine) — Morning Glory and Hawaiian Baby Woodrose Seeds (No product. The seeds are sold as garden seed under cultivar names such as Heavenly Blue and Pearly Gates, and as Argyreia nervosa seed)

Psyllium husk (Sold as ispaghula husk; the dominant branded product is Metamucil)

Saffron extract (Sold as affron, Safr'Inside and other standardised Crocus sativus stigma extracts)

Collagen peptides (Sold as hydrolysed collagen, collagen hydrolysate, gelatin hydrolysate or "specific collagen peptides"; brand ingredients include Verisol, Fortigel and CH-Alpha)

Whey protein (Sold as whey concentrate, whey isolate and whey hydrolysate — three processing grades of the same starting material)