Infographics
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Aromatase Inhibitors What They're Actually Used For
Three FDA-approved drugs — anastrozole (Arimidex), letrozole (Femara), exemestane (Aromasin) — that shut down your body's estrogen factory. Approved for ONE thing (postmenopausal breast cancer) but used far more widely off-label, so this is organized by what people actually use them for. Use #1 breast cancer: gold-standard, beats tamoxifen on recurrence (EBCTCG meta, 7,030 women) — at the cost of more fractures. Use #2 fertility: letrozole is now the GUIDELINE first-line for PCOS ovulation, beating clomiphene on live births (Cochrane, 41 trials, high certainty), and helps a subset of infertile men. Use #3 men/TRT: the popular but contested one — most men on testosterone don't need an estrogen blocker, and crashing estradiol harms bone, libido and insulin sensitivity. Plus cost (cheap generics), the WADA ban, named doctors (Legro, Khera, Cuzick) vs PubMed, and a real side-effects section. Both sides, in plain English — for the person, not the pharmacy.
TB-500 (Thymosin β-4) What the Research Actually Shows
A gray-market 'healing peptide' sold for muscle, tendon and joint recovery — but 'TB-500' returns ZERO PubMed results. The real science is its parent peptide, thymosin β-4, which has genuine human trials for the EYE and SKIN (dry eye, corneal healing 60% vs 12.5% placebo, leg ulcers) — not the injectable injury use people actually buy it for, which has no human data at all. Striking heart-regeneration results, but preclinical (mice). Covers the famous 'Wolverine stack' with BPC-157 (complementary mechanisms, popular, but zero human combination trials), the real costs vs PT/PRP, the FDA Category-2 restriction + WADA ban since 2012, the theoretical cancer concern, and a credentialed peptide doctor set against PubMed. Both sides, in plain English — for the person, not the seller.
NAC (N-Acetylcysteine) What the Research Actually Shows
A 60-year-old hospital drug that's also a popular supplement. PROVEN as a drug: the ER antidote for Tylenol (acetaminophen) overdose and a prescription mucus-thinner. As a supplement it builds glutathione (your master antioxidant) by supplying cysteine — and paired with glycine becomes GlyNAC, which improved many aging markers in older adults (Sekhar/Baylor RCT, small/unreplicated). Modest, mixed add-on for depression/OCD/addiction. Plus the wild both-sides story: the FDA tried to ban NAC as a supplement in 2020 on a technicality, then backed off in 2022. Real safety cautions (asthma/bronchospasm, stop before surgery). Includes the full GlyNAC synergy.
Glycine What the Research Actually Shows
The cheapest, sweetest amino acid — taken mainly for better SLEEP (3 g before bed helped people fall asleep faster and wake more refreshed in small RCTs), and as one of the three building blocks of glutathione, your body's master antioxidant. Paired with NAC it becomes GlyNAC, which rebuilt glutathione and improved many aging markers in older adults (Sekhar/Baylor RCT) — striking but small and not yet independently replicated. Very safe, no realistic overdose. Real research + the doctors who study it, for the person. Includes the GlyNAC synergy story.
DMSO What It's Actually Used For
A cheap, clear liquid that soaks straight through skin — with TWO FDA approvals (a human bladder condition AND veterinary, for dogs & horses), a real role in cancer care (chemo-leak tissue rescue), a job as the carrier in a mainstream arthritis rub, and a 60-year research trail through trauma and brain injury. Organized by what it's actually USED for: where it's proven, where it's standard clinical and veterinary practice, where it's still research, and where the popular rub-on-a-sore-joint use is genuinely thin. The physician-researchers (Stanley Jacob MD, Jack de la Torre MD/PhD) set against PubMed. Both sides, in plain English — for the person, not the pharmacy.
Iron What the Research Actually Shows
The world's #1 nutrient deficiency — and one of the few supplements that can genuinely hurt you if you don't need it. For the genuinely low (menstruating women ~30%, pregnancy ~42%, endurance athletes, vegetarians) iron is essential medicine. But the body can't excrete excess iron, so supplementing when you're not low slowly builds up and damages organs (hemochromatosis), and iron pills are a leading cause of child poisoning deaths. Plus the modern dosing upgrade: alternate-day single morning doses absorb better than daily/split (Stoffel 2017), and a section on frequent blood donors — a major, overlooked cause of low ferritin even in healthy men (each donation removes ~200-250 mg of iron and most don't rebuild it before they're eligible again). The rule: test your ferritin first, then decide. Both sides, in plain English.
Hyaluronic Acid What the Research Actually Shows
Most people take it as a daily powder or capsule — for JOINTS and skin — so that's how this is built. Oral HA modestly eases knee/joint pain in human trials (Cicero 2020, Kalman 2008) and, contrary to the 'barely absorbed' myth, whole-animal studies show it IS absorbed and reaches joints, skin and bone (Balogh 2008, Oe 2014 — the 0.2% figure is one germ-free-mouse study, not the answer). Skin benefits are well-proven (7-RCT meta), and an evidence-first MD (Dr. Brad Stanfield) takes 200mg/day himself. Eye drops work. The only genuinely contested use is the expensive clinic injection. Real research AND named doctors, side by side, for the person — not the pharmacy.
L-Theanine What the Research Actually Shows
The amino acid in green tea behind 'calm focus' — and the one supplement that genuinely makes caffeine better. Best-supported use: paired with caffeine (~1:2) for sharper focus with fewer jitters (Yilmaz 2023). Modest, consistent help for everyday anxiety/stress (Cavanah 2025, 13 trials); thinner as a standalone sleep aid. Non-sedating, very safe, cheap (~$5-8/mo). The honest catch: it's a gentle 'take the edge off' tool, not a powerful anti-anxiety or sleep drug, and the studied 200 mg dose is ~8 cups of tea. Both sides, in plain English.
Betaine (TMG) What the Research Actually Shows
A cheap beet-derived compound sold to lifters for strength and to the longevity crowd for 'methylation.' The honest picture: a modest, real boost to lower-body strength (SMD 0.47), and it reliably lowers homocysteine — but little for power/endurance, the mood/methylation claims are mostly theoretical, and the catch nobody mentions is that the 4 g+ dose can RAISE LDL cholesterol. Lowering homocysteine also never proved to cut heart events. A nice-to-have for a lifter at ~2.5 g; not the methylation cure-all it's marketed as. Both sides, in plain English.
Niacin (Vitamin B3) What the Research Actually Shows
An essential vitamin (too little causes pellagra — the deadly '4 D's') that was also a blockbuster cholesterol drug — until the outcome trials failed. Added to statins, high-dose niacin raised 'good' HDL but didn't prevent heart attacks (AIM-HIGH, HPS2-THRIVE), and a 2024 Cleveland Clinic study tied excess niacin's breakdown product (4PY) to ~2x the heart-event risk via inflammation. The vitamin dose (~16 mg) and the old drug dose (1,000-2,000 mg) differ ~100x. Get B3 from food; don't self-mega-dose. Both sides, in plain English.
Taurine What the Research Actually Shows
The energy-drink amino acid that briefly became an 'anti-aging miracle' in 2023 — then got walked back by an NIH study in 2025 (taurine doesn't even decline with age). What's hype vs. real: a modest blood-pressure and cholesterol drop (mostly in people with metabolic issues), a thin exercise story, and the fact that the energy-drink 'kick' is the caffeine, not the taurine. Cheap, safe, mildly useful — not a fountain of youth. Both sides, in plain English.
Creatine Monohydrate What the Research Actually Shows
The most-studied supplement on Earth — and the rare one that clearly works. The proven benefits (strength +8%, muscle, and emerging brain effects), the myths that won't die (kidneys, hair loss, 'it's a steroid', bloat, loading), the dead-simple dosing (5g/day of plain monohydrate), and why the most-proven supplement is also the cheapest (~$5/mo). Both sides, in plain English.
THC What the Research Actually Shows
The main active compound in cannabis — both sides, in plain English. Where it's real medicine (chemo nausea, MS spasticity, AIDS appetite — there are FDA-approved synthetic versions), where the claims outrun the data (sleep, anxiety, broad pain), and the real harms (psychosis risk with daily high-potency use, dependence ~9%, CHS). Plus the 2026 partial federal reschedule, and why a $5-20/mo generic often matches a ~$300/mo dispensary.
Antidepressants What the Research Actually Shows
SSRIs, the serotonin 'chemical imbalance' story, the dopamine question, a deep dive on Viibryd, the contested Paxil/Prozac pregnancy evidence (and the $1B+ lawsuits), why 1-in-9 Americans are on them, and the 'is modern life making us depressed?' question — both sides, in plain English. All 21 antidepressants beat placebo, but modestly; the low-serotonin theory was never proven.
GLP-1 Bait & Switch How the Affordable Version Got Shut Down
For two years, Ozempic/Wegovy/Zepbound were legally available compounded for ~$200/mo because of an official shortage. Then the FDA declared the shortage over, the cheap versions were shut down by law, and prices snapped back to $1,000+. The full timeline, both sides (safety vs profit), the lawsuit, and what to do if you got cut off — in plain English.
Retatrutide The Triple-Agonist Phase 3 Just Confirmed
Eli Lilly's investigational GLP-1 / GIP / glucagon agonist — 28.3% body weight loss at 80 weeks in Phase 3 TRIUMPH-1 (May 2026). Phase 2 + 3 trial data, head-to-head vs semaglutide and tirzepatide, side-effect profile, FDA approval timeline, and what the principal investigator (Dr. Ania Jastreboff, Yale) actually says.
BPC-157 What the Research Actually Shows
Peer-reviewed evidence, community protocols, regulatory position, and cost vs alternatives — layered honestly. <30 published human subjects, 0 placebo RCTs, ~100+ preclinical studies.
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