Claims checked

197 verdicts
5small trials of collagen alone against a dummy: four favoured it on some hair measure and the fifth reports a rise not checked against its dummy; none enrolled people diagnosed with hair lossMAYBEPreliminary

Does Collagen Help Hair Growth? Small Trials of Collagen Alone Lean Its Way. None Enrolled People Diagnosed With Hair Loss.

Five rows, one for each small trial of collagen alone against a dummy: four marked with the hair measure it favoured over the dummy, one drawn hollow and marked as a rise not checked against its dummy, and an empty sixth row for trials in people diagnosed with hair loss, none found; beside them the figure 5

Five small trials gave collagen on its own against a dummy. Four found some hair measure better: slightly thicker strands in three, less shedding in one; the fifth reports thicker strands we could not check against its dummy. None enrolled people diagnosed with hair loss, and most of the other trials test mixtures. We rate it Preliminary.

7.1%higher LDL on 10.6 oz (300 g) of shrimp a day than on a low-cholesterol diet, in 18 young adults over three weeks; about the same rise as on two eggs (1996 trial)MAYBEPreliminary

Is Shrimp High in Cholesterol? Yes. Two-Thirds of a Pound a Day Raised LDL 7%, About as Much as Two Eggs.

Three dots on one scale of average LDL in a 1996 feeding trial of 18 young adults: 91 mg/dL on a low-cholesterol diet, 98 on 300 g of shrimp a day and 100 on two eggs a day; the shrimp rise marked as unlikely to be chance and the gap between shrimp and eggs as could be chance; beside them the figure 7.1%

Yes: a 3-ounce serving of shrimp carries about 161 mg of cholesterol, about as much as a large egg. In a feeding trial, two-thirds of a pound a day raised LDL 7.1%, about as much as two eggs did; in another, half a pound of prawns a day found no significant difference against crab sticks. No trial we found recruited people whose cholesterol was already high.

2.5 pointsbigger fall in fatigue score on vitamin D than on dummy pills (10-to-50 scale) after four weeks, in 120 tired adults below 20 ng/mL; end scores 21.6 against 22.5, not clearly apartMAYBEPreliminary

Does Low Vitamin D Make You Tired? The Best Trial in Tired, Deficient Adults Found a 2.5-Point Gap at Four Weeks. Genes That Lower It Did Not Clearly Raise Tiredness.

Bars of fatigue score on a 10 to 50 scale in a trial of 120 tired adults low in vitamin D: 24.9 at the start and 21.6 at four weeks on vitamin D, 23.3 and 22.5 on dummy pills; beside them the figure 2.5 points

In the best trial we found, of 120 tired, otherwise healthy adults below 20 ng/mL, a vitamin D dose cut fatigue scores 2.5 points more than a dummy pill at four weeks, and the end scores were too close to call. A genetic study of 327,478 Britons found no clear link. Real deficiency brings aching bones and weak muscles.

8–10%rise in testosterone within two weeks, held for a year, on finasteride 1 mg and 5 mg in a placebo-controlled trial of 895 men; DHT fellNOUnsupported

Does Finasteride Lower Testosterone? No. It Rose About 8 to 10% in Two Large Trials. What Falls, by About 70%, Is DHT, the Hormone Made From It.

Two bars of change in the blood on finasteride: testosterone up about 8 to 10% in an 895-man trial, and DHT, the hormone made from it, down about 70%; beside them the figure 8 to 10%

No. In the controlled trials, testosterone on finasteride rose modestly, about 8 to 10% in two large trials and more in men who started low, or did not change significantly; DHT, the hormone made from it, fell about 70%. Sexual side effects are a separate question: about 4 in 100 men on the hair dose reported one in the first year, against 2 in 100 on a dummy pill.

6.8%lower testosterone after three weeks of about three beers a day, in 10 men, in a trial an alcohol-industry foundation paid for; in 7,938 men in population studies, drinkers' levels were no lowerMAYBEPreliminary

Does Alcohol Lower Testosterone? A Heavy Night Can, for Hours. Three Beers a Day Cut It 6.8% in 10 Men; in 7,938 Men, Drinkers’ Levels Were No Lower.

Bars of testosterone percent lower in drinkers: a claimed 20 to 50% that no study was found behind; 6.8% lower in a three-week trial of about three drinks a day in 10 men, paid for by an alcohol-industry foundation; and no lower in 7,938 men in population studies; beside them the figure 6.8%

A heavy night can lower testosterone for hours. Three weeks of about three beers a day cut it 6.8% in 10 men. In 7,938 men in population studies, drinkers' levels were no lower, and the pooled study that says otherwise rests on three rows whose comparison group averages 1,640 ng/dL.

2 mg/dLlower LDL with peanuts than with the comparison diets, pooled across 9 trials (3 of them gave peanut butter); the range ran from 11 lower to 6 higher, and the fall is mostly one trial that replaced saturated fatNOUnsupported

Is Peanut Butter Bad for Cholesterol? Not in Nine Trials of Peanuts and Peanut Butter. In Place of Saturated Fat, LDL Fell About 14%; Otherwise It Came Out About Even.

A forest plot of nine randomised trials of peanuts and peanut butter: LDL against the comparison diet from 19 mg/dL lower to 7 higher, most ranges crossing zero, pooled about 2 lower with a range from 11 lower to 6 higher; beside it the figure 2 mg/dL

Peanuts and peanut butter did not raise LDL in nine randomised trials pooled in 2022, three of which gave peanut butter: LDL averaged about 2 mg/dL lower than on the comparison diets, a range that includes no difference. In place of saturated fat it fell about 14%; set against snacks, rice bars or the usual diet, it came out about even.

14adults given avocado oil in the one 12-week trial of the oil we found, against 17 on soybean oil; their LDL went from about 117 to 116 mg/dL, not a significant changeMAYBEPreliminary

Is Avocado Oil Good for You? Its Fat Is Close to Olive Oil’s, Its Own Trials Are Small, and Most Bottles Tested in 2020 Were Stale or Mixed

Paired bars of LDL before and after 12 weeks in a Brazilian trial: 14 adults on avocado oil went from 116.9 to 115.9 mg/dL and 17 on soybean oil from 109.2 to 107.2, neither change significant; beside them the figure 14

Avocado oil's fat is close to olive oil's, which predicts lower LDL in place of butter. Its own trials are small: a meal study in 13 adults, and 12 weeks in 31 adults, 14 of them on avocado oil, in which cholesterol did not change significantly. Measured, the refined kind sold for high heat smoked before sunflower oil, and most bottles tested in 2020 were stale or mixed with other oils.

40.7 vs 40.5height percentile at 18 to 21 months in 1,769 very premature babies given caffeine or a dummy drug for weeks; not significantly different (P = 0.88); at 11, both groups averaged about 4 ft 9.4 in (145.7 and 145.8 cm)NOUnsupported

Does Caffeine Stunt Your Growth? The Warning Was Selling a Coffee Substitute in 1900, and the Tests Since Do Not Back It

Paired bars from a randomised trial of caffeine in very premature babies: height percentile 40.7 on caffeine against 40.5 on a dummy drug at 18 to 21 months and 48.5 against 49.5 at age 5, and height at 11 of 145.7 against 145.8 cm, none significantly different; beside them the figure 40.7 vs 40.5

The warning was in a national magazine by 1888 and selling a coffee substitute in 1900. Since then, 81 girls followed to 18 and 1,769 premature babies given caffeine or a dummy drug had heights not significantly different, and those measured at 11 still did. The signals the other way come from the very young and the poorly fed, mostly at far bigger doses per pound.

0 of 6randomised trials of creatine taken just before against just after training found a statistically significant difference in muscle or strengthNOUnsupported

When to Take Creatine: Before or After Training, Six Trials Found No Significant Difference in Muscle or Strength

Six bars, one per randomised trial of creatine taken just before against just after training, each as long as the trial ran, from 4 to 32 weeks, with 10 to 39 people finishing; none found a significant difference; beside them the figure 0 of 6

Six randomised trials set creatine taken just before training against creatine taken just after, for four to 32 weeks; none found a statistically significant difference in muscle or strength. Morning against evening was tested once, with no significant difference. Sugar alongside it makes muscle store more creatine; the four trials that tested it directly against creatine alone found no significant difference in performance, and one eight-week trial leans toward sugar without a direct test in the part we could read. Rest days are the open question.

1.5 mmHghigher top-number blood pressure on testosterone gel than on a dummy gel at 36 months in the largest trial (the FDA's figure); up to 4.9 on one oral form in its maker's study without placeboMOSTLYSupported

Does Testosterone Raise Blood Pressure? A Little: About 1.5 Points Against Placebo in the Biggest Trial, and 4.9 on One Oral Form

Bars of the rise in the top number of blood pressure on testosterone: 1.5 mmHg against a dummy gel at 36 months in the largest trial, set apart, and the makers' own 24-hour studies without placebo, from 1.7 to 4.9 by form; beside them the figure 1.5 mmHg

Testosterone therapy raises blood pressure a little. In the largest placebo-controlled trial the top number ended about 1.5 points higher on testosterone gel; the makers' 24-hour studies found rises of 1.7 to 4.9 points, highest on one oral form. The clinic claim that it lowers blood pressure rests on a registry in which men chose their treatment.