The supplement industry occupies an unusual regulatory space. In the US, supplements are regulated as foods rather than drugs — meaning manufacturers don't need to prove efficacy before selling, and claims are more loosely policed than for pharmaceuticals. This isn't inherently sinister, but it does mean that label literacy becomes essential for consumers who want to evaluate what they're actually buying.
The Proprietary Blend: Red Flag #1
A proprietary blend lists multiple ingredients under a single combined weight. Example: "Focus Matrix Blend 500mg (lion's mane, rhodiola, ashwagandha, bacopa, L-theanine, alpha-GPC)." Six ingredients in 500mg means an average of 83mg each — typically a fraction of any clinically studied dose for any of them. Proprietary blends exist to allow manufacturers to use impressive ingredient lists while maintaining negligible actual doses. They should be treated with significant scepticism.
There are legitimate reasons for proprietary blends in pharmaceutical formulation — protecting specific combinations that took R&D investment to develop. In the supplement industry, this reasoning is rarely the actual driver.
Key Facts
- Proprietary blends: combined weight hides individual doses — often sub-therapeutic
- Extract ratio: '10:1' means 10g of raw material per 1g of extract
- Standardisation %: the actual active compound content — more meaningful than raw weight
- 'Natural' and 'organic': meaningful for food, less so for bioavailability of active compounds
- Third-party testing (NSF, USP, Informed Sport): meaningful quality indicators
Extract Ratios and Standardisation
Two numbers that actually tell you something: extract ratio and standardisation percentage. A 10:1 extract means 10g of raw plant material was used to produce 1g of extract — it's more concentrated than raw powder. Standardisation percentage tells you the measured content of the specific active compound: "Rhodiola rosea extract (3% rosavins)" means you know exactly how much of the compound with clinical evidence you're getting.
Products that say simply "ashwagandha 500mg" without specifying extract or withanolide content are harder to evaluate. You might be getting an effective dose of a well-standardised extract, or you might be getting 500mg of low-quality root powder with minimal active compound content.
The simplest quality heuristic: does the label tell you the specific active compound content? If a rhodiola product doesn't specify rosavins percentage, or an ashwagandha product doesn't specify withanolides, that's a brand that doesn't want you to know how little active compound they've included.
Third-Party Testing
Because supplements aren't pre-approved by regulators, voluntary third-party testing is the most meaningful quality signal available. Certifications from NSF International, USP (United States Pharmacopeia), Informed Sport, or similar organisations mean an independent lab has verified that what's on the label is actually in the product, at the stated dose, without prohibited contaminants. For functional coffee and nootropic products, this level of verification is rare — but it's worth actively seeking out from brands that provide it.