Gut & Digestion

Gut & Digestion Evidence Ranking

Within this category, verdicts with higher evidence scores appear first. Verdicts without a score stay lower in the same list.

• A 84 Psyllium husk (psyllium husk; dietary fiber from Plantago ovata/Plantago spp. seed husk) x Smooth bowel movements and improvement of blood cholesterol
  For bowel movements, there are RCT meta-analyses of direct markers such as bowel movement frequency and stool condition, and for cholesterol, singl... · View verdict →
• B 78 Lactase enzyme x Prevention of bloating and diarrhea from lactose intolerance
  The lactose-hydrolysis mechanism is A, but symptom relief is B because of small crossover trials and formulation variation, yielding B with 78 poin... · View verdict →
• B 74 Saccharomyces boulardii x Diarrhea, gut health
  For diarrhea prevention and shortening duration this is B; if broadened to general gut health, the evidence range is narrow. · View verdict →
• B 72 Fructooligosaccharides (FOS; prebiotics) x Gut health and smoother bowel movements
  Bowel frequency is a positive direct endpoint in RCTs/meta-analyses, but effects are modest and heterogeneous; beneficial-bacteria growth is a surr... · View verdict →
• B 70 Peppermint oil (enteric-coated peppermint oil) x Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
  For IBS symptoms, there is positive direct RCT and meta-analysis evidence, so this is B. · View verdict →
• B 68 Ginger (gingerol) x digestion, anti-inflammatory effects, and nausea
  The nausea evidence is genuinely strong, but digestion is centered on surrogate markers and specific ingredients/combinations, while anti-inflammat... · View verdict →
• B 65 Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v x Relief of IBS abdominal pain, gas, and bloating
  Five strain-specific RCTs have conflicting positive and null results, low certainty, industry influence, and short-term subjective outcomes, yieldi... · View verdict →
• B 60 Inulin (chicory-derived/chicory root) x Gut health, bowel movements, and blood glucose
  Bowel function is B; blood-glucose and lipid-number claims are separated as C. · View verdict →
• C 55 Partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG) x Gut health, bowel movements, IBS
  There are IBS and bowel-movement signals, but study-design and surrogate-marker limitations make this upper-end C. · View verdict →
• C 55 Galactooligosaccharides (GOS) x Improvement of constipation and stool frequency, and increased bifidobacteria
  Microbial change is consistent but surrogate, while the bowel clinical endpoint is mixed and industry-concentrated, resulting in C with 52 points. · View verdict →
• C 52 Kimchi-derived probiotics (plant-derived lactic acid bacteria) x gut health
  Gut-health signals are confined to specific strains or small kimchi-food studies, and independent replication, non-kimchi controls, and strain gene... · View verdict →
• C 50 Multi-enzyme digestive supplement x Improved digestion and bloating in the general population
  Functional-dyspepsia RCTs exist, but the products differ and their results cannot be attributed to all multi-enzyme supplements, supporting the upp... · View verdict →
• C 48 Aloe (aloe vera; aloe gel/whole leaf/latex must be distinguished) x gut health, bowel movements, and skin health
  There are short-term RCT signals in disease groups for aloe gel and laxative action for aloe whole leaf/latex, but the evidence is small for speaki... · View verdict →
• C 48 Xylooligosaccharides (XOS) x Improved bowel movements and increased bifidobacteria
  Increased bifidobacteria has been observed repeatedly but is a surrogate marker, while bowel improvement remains limited to small, short trials, su... · View verdict →
• C 45 Heat-killed lactic acid bacteria (postbiotics, paraprobiotics, heat-treated cultured bacterial cells) x Superiority claim that they are clinically better than live probiotics
  Delivery to the intestine, high counts, and storage stability are only surrogate logic for clinical efficacy superiority, and the effects of heat-k... · View verdict →
• C 45 Bromelain (pineapple enzyme) x Digestive support and relief of inflammation/edema
  Digestive efficacy lacks standalone human proof, and inflammation evidence is small, heterogeneous, and surrogate-marker centered, so broad adverti... · View verdict →
• C 45 Butyrate salts (butyrate) x IBS abdominal pain and bloating, and improved intestinal barrier
  IBS symptom results mix selected positive findings with negative key adult symptoms, while the intestinal-barrier claim has a D character because i... · View verdict →
• C 44 Manuka honey (MGO/UMF) x Stomach health, Helicobacter pylori, GERD symptoms, and immunity
  There is test-tube antibacterial activity and a small positive GERD pilot, but the H. pylori human trial failed and there is no human immune eviden... · View verdict →
• C 40 ABC juice (apple, beet, carrot) and cabbage juice x Stomach health and detoxification
  The key issue is whether classic ulcer healing, surrogate markers such as liver enzymes, and mechanistic plausibility can be directly connected to... · View verdict →
• C 40 Cassia seed (Cassia obtusifolia/Senna obtusifolia seed) x Eyes, constipation
  Constipation is plausible mechanistically, so this is lower-end C; the eye claim lacks evidence. · View verdict →
• C 40 Mastic gum (Pistacia lentiscus) x Functional dyspepsia and Helicobacter suppression
  Functional dyspepsia is C on one producer-supported RCT, while Helicobacter eradication is D after negative and nonsignificant results, yielding an... · View verdict →
• C score not listed Probiotics (lactic acid bacteria) x gut health and improved bowel movements
  The evidence is conflicting or limited. · View verdict →
• ? score not listed Slippery elm bark (Ulmus rubra) x Soothing acid reflux, heartburn, and a sensitive gut
  No standalone human GERD or IBS efficacy literature was identified and only combination studies were found, so the rating is unknown with no score. · View verdict →