Why Most Men's Supplements Don't Work

You've probably tried at least one. Maybe a testosterone booster from Amazon. Maybe a libido formula from a brand you found through an Instagram ad. Maybe something a mate recommended.

And if you're reading this, it probably didn't work. Or it worked for a fortnight and stopped. Or you couldn't tell whether it was doing anything at all.

You're not alone. And it's not your fault.

The men's supplement category has a structural problem, and until you understand what that problem is, every product on the shelf is going to feel like a gamble.

Here's what's actually going on.

The evidence gap is bigger than most brands will admit

In 2020, researchers at Thomas Jefferson University published a systematic review in the International Journal of Impotence Research that looked at the ingredients in the top-selling testosterone and erectile dysfunction supplements in the United States. They reviewed 37 ingredients across 32 products and searched for randomised controlled trials supporting their use.

The findings were sobering. No whole supplement product had published randomised controlled trial evidence. Only 19% of individual ingredients received strong positive evidence. And 68% of ingredients received grades for contradictory, negative, or lacking evidence. [1]

A separate study published in the World Journal of Men's Health evaluated 50 testosterone booster supplements found via Google search. Ninety percent claimed to boost testosterone. But when the researchers checked PubMed, only 24.8% of the individual components had any data showing an increase in testosterone. 10.1% actually had data suggesting they decreased it. And for 61.5% of the components, no data existed at all. [2]

That's the category you're shopping in. Most products are built from ingredients where the evidence is either mixed, missing, or pointing in the wrong direction.

The proprietary blend problem

Even when a supplement contains ingredients with some supporting evidence, there's another problem: you often can't tell how much of each ingredient you're actually getting.

A proprietary blend is a labelling practice that allows supplement manufacturers to list a group of ingredients under a single name with only the total weight disclosed. The individual doses of each ingredient are hidden. This is legal in most markets, including the UK.

According to research published in the journal Nutrients, approximately 34% of supplement labels in the US Dietary Supplement Label Database listed ingredients in blends, and 21% used proprietary blends specifically. The study noted that this practice "complicates the quantification of bioactives listed as dietary ingredients for accurately estimating exposures." [3]

In plain language: you can't tell what you're taking.

A supplement might list 15 impressive-sounding ingredients on the label with a total proprietary blend weight of 500mg. Do the maths. That's an average of roughly 33mg per ingredient, and in reality the first ingredient probably takes up most of the weight while the rest are present in trace amounts. The supplement industry calls this "fairy dusting" or "label dressing." It means including just enough of an ingredient to print its name on the label, without including enough to actually do anything.

The fake review problem

The research also points to something uncomfortable about the reviews you see online.

A 2019 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine analysed the top-selling testosterone boosters on Amazon. When they ran the customer reviews through ReviewMeta (a tool that identifies potentially unreliable reviews), the results changed dramatically. There was a 91% decrease in users reporting increased libido after filtering. A 59% decrease in reports of increased energy. And a 93% decrease in reports of improved strength and endurance. [4]

That doesn't mean every positive review is fake. But it means the review landscape is heavily distorted, and the confidence you get from seeing "4.5 stars, 3,000 reviews" might not reflect real-world experience as accurately as it appears.

Why the category stays broken

The supplement industry is largely self-regulated. Unlike pharmaceuticals, supplements don't require pre-market approval. They don't need to demonstrate efficacy through clinical trials before being sold. The burden of proof is on regulators to show a product is unsafe, not on manufacturers to show it works.

This creates a market where the barrier to entry is low, the incentive to differentiate on formulation is weak, and the easiest way to compete is on marketing rather than performance. More aggressive claims. Better packaging. Louder branding. Bigger ingredient lists. None of which have anything to do with whether the product actually works in your body.

So what should you actually look for?

If you're still open to trying a men's supplement after reading this, here's what the research suggests you should check before buying:

Full dose disclosure. If a product uses a proprietary blend, you can't verify whether the ingredients are dosed at levels that match the existing research. Look for products that list every ingredient with its individual dose per serving.

Fewer, more intentional ingredients. A long ingredient list is not a sign of quality. In many cases, it's a sign of label dressing. A formula with 8 to 12 well-chosen ingredients at meaningful doses is generally more credible than a formula with 25 ingredients at unmeasured amounts.

Manufacturing certifications. GMP certification, third-party testing, and food safety certifications (like BRCGS) don't guarantee the product will work, but they do confirm the product contains what the label says it contains. That's a minimum standard many products fail to meet.

Realistic timelines. Any product that promises noticeable results within days is either pharmaceutical-grade (and should be regulated as such) or overpromising. Botanical formulas work on a timeline of weeks, not hours. If the marketing doesn't acknowledge that, the brand is prioritising the sale over your experience.

A brand that acknowledges the problem. The best signal of a trustworthy supplement brand is one that openly discusses why the category has a trust problem. If a brand talks as though the entire market is working perfectly and they're simply the best version of it, they're part of the problem.

References

[1] Kuchakulla M, Narasimman M, Soni Y, Zielinski M, Randazzo M, Ramasamy R. A systematic review and evidence-based analysis of ingredients in popular male testosterone and erectile dysfunction supplements. International Journal of Impotence Research. 2021;33:311-317. doi:10.1038/s41443-020-0285-x

[2] Clemesha CG, Thaker H, Samplaski MK. 'Testosterone Boosting' Supplements Composition and Claims Are not Supported by the Academic Literature. World Journal of Men's Health. 2020;38(1):115-122. doi:10.5534/wjmh.190043

[3] Saldanha LG, Dwyer JT, Andrews KW, Bailey RL. Perspectives on the Use of Proprietary Blends in Dietary Supplements. Nutrients. 2023;15(10):2340. doi:10.3390/nu15102340

[4] Balasubramanian A, Thirumavalavan N, Srivatsav A, Yu J, Lipshultz LI, Pastuszak AW. Testosterone Imposters: An Analysis of Popular Online Testosterone Boosting Supplements. Journal of Sexual Medicine. 2019;16(2):203-212. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2018.12.008

Talon was built with this problem in mind. Full doses listed. No proprietary blends. 25+ formulations tested before launch.