Supplement Guides on PricePlow
Welcome to PricePlow, the sports supplement industry's premier thought leaders!
This page links to our “best of” lists and “mega posts” – extremely well-researched articles ranging from scams to avoid to buyer's guides to in-depth ingredient analyses.
Critical Information
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The Amino Acid Protein Spiking Scandal
Read and understand this before ever buying protein powder!
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Proprietary Blends
Understand the risks of encountering a “Batch-to-Batch Bait and Switch” when buying a proprietary blend!
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Nutrition Facts Label Rounding Scams
Learn about a scam where brands take advantage of the FDA's labeling laws and use rounding to their advantage with ultra-small serving sizes.
Ingredient Analyses
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Muscle Building Supplements:
- HMB (β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate): Performance-Driven Muscle Supplement
- GG-Gold (Geranylgeraniol): The Most Important Essential Nutrient You’ve Never Heard Of
- RipFACTOR: The Muscle Accelerator from PLT Health
RipFACTOR is a powerful ingredient standardized from Mangifera indica and Sphaeranthus indicus that the industry shouldn’t overlook. It offers numerous benefits for optimizing physical performance, with two clinically-published human studies.
- PeptiStrong: Natural Anabolic Ingredient from Fava Beans
- Turkesterone
- Rhaponticum Carthamoides: The MAX Phytoecdysteroid Source
- EAA vs. BCAA
- Betaine
- Beta Alanine
- Ingredient Optimized (io) Protein (ioWhey and ioPea): Protein-Enhancing Technology for Greater Gains
- Velositol: Enhancing Muscle Protein Synthesis for Protein Powders and Aminos
- Pumpkin Seed Protein: Upending the Plant Protein Market
- Phosphatidic Acid
- Epicatechin
- Arachidonic Acid
- Tongkat Ali
- Tomatidine
- Spilanthes Acmella
- Laxogenin
- Dextrose
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Non-Stimulatory Performance Enhancers
Hydration: The Ultimate Guide. How do you stay hydrated? This article covers the best approach to fluid and electrolyte intake, also cautioning against what may harm your hydration status
- EndoFlo: Enhancing Vascular Health, Pumps, and Workout Performance
- Hydration: The Ultimate Guide to Electrolyte and Fluid Balance
- Nucleotides
- NMN Supplements (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide): The NAD+ Energy Precursor
- BioNMN: A Reliable NMN Supplement Ingredient
- The FDA vs. NMN (will be updated regularly)
- NucleoPrime: Step Up Your Immune and Recovery Stack
- NMN Supplements (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide): The NAD+ Energy Precursor
- Peak ATP: The Ultimate Guide to Disodium ATP Supplements
- PurpleForce: AMPK-Boosting Purple Tea Extract with GHG
- Senactiv: Regenerate Senescent Cells and Perform Better
- Taurine: An effective endurance-booster in just one use!
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Glycerol: The Ultimate Guide for Hydration, Heat Protection, and Pumps
- HydroPrime: Glycerol With More Pumps and Less Clumps
- Cordyceps
- Beta-Glucans: Mother Nature's Immunity Agents
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Weight Loss Ingredients (non-stimulatory)
- Berberine: The Best Glucose Disposal Ingredient Just Got Better
Berberine is a nutrient partitioning ingredient that sends more carbs to muscle! Read about Berberine and GlucoVantage in the above guide.!
- GlucoVantage: NNB Nutrition's Dihydroberberine
- BAIBA: New Ingredient Generates Exercise in a Pill?!
- MitoBurn: L-BAIBA (“The Exercise Molecule”) is finally on the market!
- Grains of Paradise
- CaloriBurn: Taking Grains of Paradise to Hot New Heights
Finally, a grains of paradise extract that actually passes lab tests for all clinical constituents!
- See also: WAT to BAT: A High-Metabolism Guide to Brown and White Fat
- MCT Oil: The Dietary Fat Source Built for Efficient Energy
- C8Vantage: C8 MCT Powder for Maximum Energy, Clarity, and Performance
- Chromium Picolinate: The Ultimate Trace Mineral For Insulin Sensitivity
- Chromax: 25+ Years of Insulin Sensitivity Improvement
- Chromax and Hunger Regulation: The Chromium / Appetite Connection
- aXivite Phenylcapsaicin: Performance-Enhancing Spice with Less Burn
- Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA): The Cognitive-Boosting Antioxidant
- InnoSlim: NuLivScience’s Potent Stimulant-Free Fat Burning Ingredient
- Bergamot: Natural Cardiovascular / Lipid Support
- Ephedra
- Forskolin
- Dehydrozingerone (Anti-inflammatory adipose tissue blocker from ginger)
- ZinjaBurn: “The Adipose Tissue Assassin”
- Gamma Butyrobetaine (GBB) – Super Carnitine That Makes You Sweat?!
- Ecklonia Cava
- Sinetrol
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Nootropics (cognitive focus and brain enhancers)
- Rhodiola – The Salidroside-Powered Adaptogen of the Vikings
- RhodioPrime 6X – The Strongest Rhodiola Extract (6% Salidroside)
- Zynamite: Next-Generation Brain and Body Support using Mangiferin
- Zembrin: The Best-Studied Kanna Extract on the Market
- Choline
- Cognizin® Citicoline: The Brain Choline
- Bacopa Monnieri
- L-Tyrosine vs N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine
- nooLVL – Clinically-Validated Focus for Gamers
- SAMe (S-Adenosyl Methionine)
- Gotu Kola
- Vinpocetine
Rhodiola: The Adaptogen Powered by Salidroside. In this article, we dive deep into rhodiola, and take a different approach to the adaptogenic herb!
- FDA vs. Picamilon
- Rhodiola – The Salidroside-Powered Adaptogen of the Vikings
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Stimulants
- Paraxanthine (the primary caffeine metabolite, launched in the MuscleTech iQ Series)
- zümXR: Extended and Delayed Released Caffeine from PLT Health
- Ephedra (hint: the ephedrine alkaloids have been removed and replaced with other ingredients)
- Higenamine: The Underrated Appetite Supressant Stimulant
- Dynamine
- Eria Jarensis Extract / N-phenethyl-dimethylamine
- Theacrine
- Caffeine and Athletic Performance – Can High Pre-Workout Doses of Caffeine be Optimal?
Nutrition21's nooLVL
is the first clinically tested focus ingredient on actual gamers – who played modern games!
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Men's Fertility Supplements
- Zinc Picolinate (ZinMax): A Highly Bioavailable Form of Zinc
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Sleep Ingredients
- Magnesium Glycinate: A Master Class in Magnesium & Glycine
- Anandamide: The Body’s Blissful Endocannabinoid Molecule
- Venetron: A Synergistic Extract for Mood, Stress, and Sleep
- ETAS: Boost Heat Shock Protein Production
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Gut Supplements
- Digexin: Relieve Constipation, Stress, and Poor Sleep via the Gut-Brain Axis
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Joint Supplements
- Curcumin for Joint Pain
- MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane) Supplements
- Cissus Quadrangularis
- ParActin
- (See also Anandamide above)
- Arecoline (Potentially carcinogenic ingredient in new pre workouts and fat burners)
- AMP Citrate (banned)
- Isomaltooligosaccharide (IMO Fiber): A Fraudulent “Fiber”?
- Maximum Shred (Scam: $87 Product with $4 of Ingredients)
- Instant Knockout (Is this questionably-dosed fat burner worth $59?!)
- Labz Supplement Brands
- Soylent (see also the Soylent Lawsuit)
- Beware: Ion Exchange Whey — An Inferior type of protein processing
Other Scams / Scandals / Potentially Unsafe Ingredients
Contact us if you have ideas / requests for new ones.
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HYDRATION: The Ultimate Guide to Electrolyte and Fluid Balance
We’ve all heard that the human body is roughly 60% water.[1]
But where does that water actually go? Where is it stored? The answer is, in your cells, which consist of an even greater proportion of water by weight: Your cells are actually 70% water![2]
What Does It Mean To Be Hydrated?Arguably, the […]
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Caffeine + Taurine: Another Reason to Love Animal Chews
Animal is a brand that needs no introduction — it’s one of the most respected names in sports nutrition. The company is known for the legendary Animal Pak, which was the first product of its kind – less a supplement than a comprehensive supplementation system, with its multitude of ingredients organized into packs […]
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Cognizin® Citicoline: The Brain Choline
Enhancing cognitive traits like mood, focus, and reasoning is the reason many consumers take supplements. In this fast-paced, competitive world, your brain is your body’s prime real estate. Importantly, in our information economy, how well your brain functions and performs under stress can make or break your career.
That’s where choline comes in.
Choline is […]
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Muscle Glycogen Reload: Sugar, Dextrose, and Animal Creatine Chews
It’s summer of 2023, and everyone’s been talking about creatine again. This time it’s getting more attention from women, which is something we’ve wanted to see for decades.
Always ahead of the curve, the Animal team over at Universal Nutrition has long had many creatine-based supplements, but they reformulated their lineup in 2022, […]
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PeptiStrong: Natural Anabolic Ingredient from Fava Beans
Have you ever wondered how new nutritional supplements are discovered? Historically speaking, there’s more than one answer to this question.
Lately, a new technique for identifying blockbuster supplements of the future has emerged:
AI-driven research.
Researchers are using massive computers, equipped with the latest language learning models, to comb biochemical databases looking for any and […]
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Rhodiola: The Salidroside-Powered Adaptogen of the Vikings
“Fast-paced,” “high-stress,” and “non-stop” are just a few adjectives to describe the world today. We’re always balancing multiple objectives — family, work, recreation, exercise, health, all of which demand large amounts of physical and mental energy. Unfortunately, our efforts are not always enough, and it’s easy to feel weighed down by fatigue, stress, and mental […]
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HMB (β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate): Performance-Driven Muscle Supplement
Anyone who’s been in the supplement game for a while has no doubt heard of, and probably taken, branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs).
BCAA supplementation is famously anti-catabolic, helping prevent the undue breakdown of muscle tissue during exercise. This is why, during the 2010s, many intermittent fasting OGs like Martin Berkhan of Leangains recommended training […]
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WAT to BAT: A High-Metabolism Guide to Brown and White Fat
Nearly everyone wants a faster metabolism, right? The million-dollar question is, “How do you get one?”
Is it the result of eating certain foods and doing certain exercises? Is it genetically predetermined? Debate over these questions has raged for years – and probably won’t stop any time soon.
Brown Adipose Tissue (BAT) or “Brown Fat”[…]Continue Reading →
Anandamide: The Body’s Blissful Endocannabinoid Molecule
Most of us – hopefully – have experienced the runner’s high that comes from a great workout. It’s this healthy, euphoric feeling that motivates gym goers the world over to hit it hard day after day after day.
It’s tempting to write this sensation off as a spiritual experience, in that it’s a transient and […]
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Rhaponticum Carthamoides: The MAX Phytoecdysteroid Source
In 2022, most consumers of the sports supplement industry have likely noticed a large increase in supplements based upon turkesterone. This naturally-occurring plant-based steroid is in a class of compounds known as phytoecdysteroids, which has seen a large resurgence the past couple of years.
In this article, we dig into one of the […]
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