About
How We Review
Every entry in the index runs the same four checks. This page explains what we look at, what each result means, where our information comes from, and how the site is paid for.
What we do
The Biology Code is an independent reference for dietary supplements. For each product we read the label, the seller's own web pages and the published research, and then we write down what we could confirm and what we could not. We aim to be skeptical but fair: we say what is genuinely good about a product as readily as we say what is missing.
Field notes carry the byline The Biology Code Editorial Team, and entries are published by the same team without an individual author's name. We do not claim clinical or laboratory credentials, and nothing here should be read as if a doctor or a lab had signed off on it.
The four checks
Each check has a letter and a color, and each one asks a single question that a shopper can actually act on.
Actives
What is in it, and how much? We read the Supplement Facts panel and ask whether every active ingredient has a stated amount per serving, whether its form is named, and whether any doses are hidden inside a "proprietary blend" total.
Claims
Do the seller's promises match what human studies found? We compare what the box and the sales page say with the research on the same ingredients at comparable doses: who was studied, for how long, and what was actually measured.
Guarantees
What does it cost, what happens if you want your money back, and who is really selling it? We record the price we saw and the date, read the refund terms as written, and note the seller of record where it can be found.
Testing
Has anyone independent verified the product, or only the seller? We look for a named laboratory or certification program and, where we can, look the product up in that program's own public listing.
If you want to read a label yourself, our field notes on reading a Supplement Facts panel and on what third-party testing seals mean go into the same details.
What each status means
Every check ends in one of three statuses, shown with a symbol: a tick (✓) when the check is met, a half-filled circle (◐) when it is partly met, and a cross (✕) when it is not met or not shown. The label on the status changes with the check, because "disclosed" is the right word for a dose and the wrong word for a refund policy.
| Check | Status | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| A · Actives | Disclosed | Every active ingredient is listed with an amount per serving, and the form is named where it matters. No active dose is hidden inside a blend total. |
| Partial | Some doses are shown, but at least one active, or a whole group of them, is lumped inside a blend total, is missing its form, or has no amount. | |
| Not shown | The doses that matter are not disclosed, for example the main actives are named with no amounts at all, or we could not find a readable Supplement Facts panel on the review date. | |
| C · Claims | Supported | The seller's main claims are consistent with human studies of the same ingredient at comparable doses, and we cite them. It does not mean the product will work for any particular person. |
| Partial | Some claims are consistent with the research. Others rest on small, short or mixed studies, on animal or laboratory work, or on a different dose or form than the product contains. | |
| Overreaches | The seller's claims go beyond what the research we found shows, or lean on studies that do not match the product. | |
| G · Guarantees | Clear | The price, the refund terms and the seller's identity are easy to find and specific. This describes what is published, not a promise about how any seller behaves. |
| Partial | Some of it is clear, but something is missing or hard to pin down, such as conditions attached to a refund window, a price that varies, or thin details about who the seller is. | |
| Unclear | We could not find clear refund terms, a clear seller identity, or a stable price. | |
| T · Testing | Verified | A named independent laboratory or certification program has tested or certified this specific product, and we could confirm it, ideally in the program's own public listing on the review date. |
| Partial | Some independent testing is shown but it is limited: it covers one ingredient or batch, the seal appears on the seller's page but we could not confirm the listing, or the program checks something narrower than a shopper might assume. | |
| Not shown | We could not find an independent certification or laboratory result. The seller may still run its own quality checks. We record only what is shown. |
A status describes what we could confirm on the review date. It is not a safety rating, not a quality guarantee, and not a recommendation to buy or to avoid. We do not add the four checks together into a single score or star rating.
Where our information comes from
We work from primary sources wherever they exist:
- the product label, from the seller's own pages or an authorized retailer;
- the seller's terms, refund policy, company details and price;
- the public directory of any certification program or laboratory a seller names;
- published research, mainly papers indexed in PubMed, together with systematic reviews and reference material from government agencies and scientific societies.
Each entry lists its sources at the bottom, and we link only to pages we have actually opened. Prices and terms are recorded with the date we saw them, and every entry shows the date it was reviewed.
When we cannot confirm something
We say so. If a dose is not printed, we write "not disclosed". If we could not find a refund policy or a certifier's listing, we write that we could not confirm it. We do not fill gaps with guesses, with another website's summary, or with the seller's marketing copy, and when we repeat something a seller says we attribute it to the seller.
How often entries are reviewed
Labels, formulas, prices, refund terms and websites change without notice, so an entry describes a product as we found it on the review date shown on the page, not as it is today. We update an entry when we learn something has changed, for example when a reader tells us or we notice a new formula, and we note the date of the update on the page. We do not promise a fixed review schedule, so if you are relying on a price or a refund term, confirm it with the seller before you order.
Corrections
If you think we got something wrong, whether a dose, a study, a price or a refund term, please tell us. Write to [email protected] with the link to the page and, if you can, the source you are relying on (see Contact). We check the point against primary sources. If we find an error we correct the page and note the date of the correction. If we conclude the page is right, we will say why where that is practical. Sellers and brands can use the same route.
Independence and money
Some links on this site are affiliate links. Some entries link to Amazon, where we take part in the Amazon Associates program, and some link to a seller's own store through that seller's affiliate program. If you buy through one of those links we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. That commission is how the site is funded, and we would rather tell you plainly that it exists.
A commission never changes a check status. We decide statuses from the label, the seller's pages and public sources before anyone considers whether a link would earn anything, and whether an entry carries a commission link or none makes no difference to how it is reviewed. Commissions on sales are the only money we earn from the retailers and sellers we link to. They are paid on purchases made through our links, not for a review: we do not accept payment from sellers for a review or for a status. The details, including how the links are marked, are on the Affiliate Disclosure page.
What we do not do
- We do not run laboratory tests. What we say about contents and testing comes from labels, seller pages, certifier listings and published research. We have not analyzed the contents of any product ourselves.
- We do not give medical advice. The index is educational. It does not diagnose anything or tell you what to take. If you take medicine, are pregnant or nursing, or have a health condition, ask a qualified clinician or pharmacist before starting a supplement.
- We do not sell or ship products. Orders are placed with Amazon or with the seller, whose terms apply. See Shipping and Returns.
- We do not assume a regulator has checked the product. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not approve dietary supplements before they are sold, and manufacturers are responsible for the safety and labeling of their products. That is a large part of why reading the label carefully matters.
The publisher
The Biology Code is published by AGENCY WEALTH PARTNERS LLC of Bonita Springs, Florida. Address, email and phone number are on the Contact page.