How to Stop Getting Scammed By Supplement Companies

Note: Originally had this transcribed and edited for me while I was on vacation, which turned out to be a disaster. Some things can only get done right if you do them yourself.

Everyone knows the supplement industry is full of scams. But few know that scamming is standard procedure in this unregulated industry. Unlike the pharmaceutical industry, where the FDA inspects every batch to ensure each pill lives up to label claims, supplement companies have no such oversight.

This lack of oversight has created a world where even the Amazon Top Sellers and Walmart shelves are stocked with underdosed supplements, products with little to no active ingredients, and protein powders that manipulate tests using questionable methods like nitrogen protein spiking.

How to DYOR

To start figuring out who you can trust, begin by looking for brands that place a strong emphasis on third-party testing and transparency. Sometimes you’ll be able to find third-party CoAs (certificate of analysis) on their website. Other times you may have to reach out to them directly and request copies of their third-party test results, which you can then verify the information with the lab using the reference number on the test. This will allow you to confirm the 3rd party tests aren’t being faked.

Even the Big Players are Guilty

As you can see, even industry-leading brands like Thorne fail to disclose their CoAs from 3rd party testing facilities. You can’t help but ask why a company would keep this private unless 1) they don’t do 3rd party testing 2) they frequently fail. If neither of those were true, they would be thrilled to share the CoAs. After all that would earn them more trust, which means more sales.

Supplement Communities

Besides seeking out the 3rd party tests yourself from the manufacturer, you can access plenty of data from testing conducted by communities and organizations. Supplement-focused subreddits like r/supplements, r/nootropics, r/nootropicsdepot and websites like consumerlab.com offer great insight into the quality and accuracy of various products.

Consumerlab.com has a $59 annual membership fee to access its comprehensive testing data, but the investment is well worth it considering it’ll likely save you more than that.

Biohacker Approved Supplement Companies

While you should always be doing your own due diligence, there are definitely a few trustworthy companies that stand out:

1. NOW

2. Life Extension

3. Nootropics Depot

These brands have all been around for over a decade and built a strong reputation for quality and transparency. These guys have set a high bar for the industry, demonstrating that it is possible to produce effective high quality supplements without cutting corners or misleading consumers.

Out of the 3 listed, Nootropics Depot has emerged as the gold standard for quality control. I had the opportunity to tour their facilities and was completely blown away by their commitment to quality and sheer professionalism.

Automated Capsule filling machine for creating uniformly dosed capsules with precisions by the thousands per hour.

They’ve made significant investments in their own manufacturing facilities, allowing them to maintain complete oversight over the production process from start to finish. By producing supplements in-house, they can ensure that each and every product meets their exacting standards for purity, potency, and overall quality.

What sets Nootropics Depot apart even further is their commitment to testing their products both before and after third-party testing. This dual-testing approach provides an extra layer of assurance, guaranteeing that each batch of supplements meets their rigorous standards. Simply put, they operate exactly like a pharmaceutical company.

What’s seriously impressive is that despite the substantial investments (somewhere in the the mid 8 figures I’d imagine) they have made in their facilities and testing procedures, they have managed to keep their prices very reasonable. This proves you don’t need to scam to make it in the supplement industry, yet so few are doing it.

For this reason Nootropics Depot is my go-to for all nutritional supplements, nootropics, and herbal extracts. Anything else that’s not available through Nootropics Depot, I’ll grab through NOW or Life Extension.

However, when it comes to more niche supplements, it may be necessary to seek out other reputable brands. For example, Ramp Health with B4. . The company's CEO, TJ, works closely with a respected pharmaceutical manufacturer to produce B4, and their set up is every bit as professional as Nootropics Depot or any other pharma company for that matter. Still, Ramp Health third-party tests every batch before it is released to consumers to go that extra length in providing quality control and transparency.

Fact: MOST Herb/Mushroom Extracts on the Market Are BUNK

When it comes to vitamins and minerals, the primary concern is typically underdosing. While it is still important to choose reputable brands and look for third-party testing, the risk of encountering completely fake products is generally lower than with more complex supplements like herbal extracts.

Herbal extracts present a much higher risk of being inaccurately labeled or even completely fake. This is because creating standardized herbal extracts requires a pharmaceutical-grade lab and manufacturing procedure.

The process of extracting specific phytochemicals from raw plant material is complex and besides requiring a great deal of expertise to perform, requires millions of dollars of equipment to perform properly. Why does this matter?

Over 99% of supplement companies do not have the necessary infrastructure or expertise to produce high-quality herbal extracts in-house. So where do they get it? 3rd party overseas manufacturers, usually from China, which have no problem scamming or selectively scamming their customers.

This outsourcing massively increases the risk and sometimes even guarantees that they’ll receive underdosed or even completely fake herbal extracts. This is why it is so important to seek out companies that have invested in the necessary infrastructure to produce these extracts in-house, ensuring their quality and authenticity.

The challenges associated with producing high-quality herbal extracts are compounded by the fact that testing for specific phytochemicals can be incredibly difficult. These compounds are often present in small quantities and can be difficult to isolate and measure accurately. Some phytochemicals can even mimic other compounds, leading to false-positive results on standard tests.

Top Tier High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry setup for separating each individual compound in a supplement sample for analysis

To further complicate matters, there is a lack of established reference standards for many niche ingredients, making it even harder to ensure the accuracy of test results. This means that even if a company is testing their herbal extracts, they may not have a reliable benchmark to compare their results against.

Here is where Nootropics Depot is creating the a reference standard for Beta-Ecdysterone, which will be used for testing future batches.

This is where Nootropics Depot truly shines. They have invested millions of dollars into research and development to create accurate testing methods and reference standards for these complex ingredients. By doing so, they have set a new standard for quality and transparency in the industry, and have become the go-to source for those seeking the most effective and trustworthy herb/mushroom extracts.

Preparative HPLC setup used to create herbal extracts by separating the hundreds of phytochemicals into individual tubes.

The level of dedication and investment that Nootropics Depot has put into ensuring the quality of their herbal extracts is truly unmatched in the industry. They have assembled a team of experts in analytical chemistry, biochemistry, and botany to develop and refine their testing methods, and have invested in state-of-the-art equipment to carry out these tests in-house.

Final Thoughts

The truth ain’t pretty. Even if you buy a supplement off the shelf of your local pharmacy or Walmart you’re probably getting scammed. Don’t even get me started on the “Best Selling” mushroom extracts, Tongkat Ali T boosters (touting an IMPOSSIBLE 20:1 extract ratio), and fat burners.

By prioritizing brands like NOW, Life Extension, and Nootropics Depot that have a proven track record of quality and transparency, you can greatly reduce your risk of falling victim to this grimy industry of snake oil salesman.

Remember that even with these trusted brands, it’s still important to stay in the loop. Check the subreddits, talk on X, consumerlab reports, etc and stay up to date so you’re aware of any changes in quality or potential issues that may arise. Just because they’re doing things right today, doesn’t mean they won’t slip up one of these days. We saw that with one of my favorite brands after they were bought out, Double Wood (RIP)

For anyone looking to purchase from Nootropics Depot you can enjoy a 10% discount using the code BIOHACKER10

I don’t have a discount code for NOW or Life Extension and while you can order directly, your best bet is usually gonna be Amazon if you’re a prime member.

You can also find B4 at Ramp Health and use coupon code BOWTIED for 10% off

As always, happy to respond to any questions and comments. Until next time, Superhumans!