10 Wild Fun Facts About the Supplement Industry

One supplement with a perfect 100/100 score. One that turns your skin permanently blue. 19 different supplements with documented hepatotoxicity. The 10 stats from our database that we couldn't bear to leave out of the Discover page.

1. 420 clinical trials on psyllium husk — plus an FDA-authorized coronary heart disease claim at 7 g/day.
2. 57% fewer cardiac deaths with dietary K2 — Rotterdam Study (n=4,807): high vs low menaquinone intake.
3. 43% reduction in major cardiac events with CoQ10 — Q-SYMBIO (n=420), 300 mg/day ubiquinone over two years.
4. 25% drop in cardiac events with high-dose EPA — REDUCE-IT (NEJM 2019, n=8,179) at 4 g/day icosapent ethyl.
5. 2 fewer migraine days/month with riboflavin — at 400 mg/day, per Cochrane.
6. 10× drop in alpha-ketoglutarate from age 30 to 80 — the basis for every Ca-AKG longevity product.
7. 19 supplements with documented hepatotoxicity — kava, green tea extract, usnic acid, Fo-Ti, greater celandine, comfrey, germander, chaparral, pennyroyal, coltsfoot, skullcap, ashwagandha (rare), high-dose A and E, SAMe, sea moss, CLA, black cohosh, schisandra.
8. The only perfect score in the database is oral rehydration salts. Next-highest scorer is 4 points behind.
9. The lowest score in the database is greater celandine — 22/100. 78 points behind the top.
10. Argyria is forever. Colloidal silver permanently turns skin blue-grey. Silver granules deposit in the dermis. There is no treatment.

Bottom line

The supplement aisle is a strange place. The cheapest product in the database has the strongest evidence; one of the trendiest products causes irreversible skin discoloration. Both are still on shelves. Both will be on shelves next year.

See the full set of facts with citations on Discover →