Methodology

How LYO grades evidence

In one paragraphEvery claimed effect of every compound gets its own grade from A to D. The grade measures one thing: how much human evidence exists and how consistent it is. Animal and cell studies never move a grade above D. Grades are not recommendations, they are not safety ratings, and they change when the studies do — with every change logged and dated.

The four grades

A

Grade A — established in humans

Several well-run randomised trials in people, pointing the same way. You can plan around this. It still says nothing about whether the effect is worth the side effects for you.

B

Grade B — probable, not settled

Human trials exist and mostly agree, but there are too few of them, they are too small, or one big one is still reading out. Expect the grade to move.

C

Grade C — weak human evidence

A few small or poorly-controlled human studies. Enough to be interesting; not enough to count on. Most of what gets called “clinically proven” online lives here.

D

Grade D — no human evidence

Animal studies, cell studies, or anecdotes only. This is where almost every viral peptide sits. Promising and proven are different words for a reason.

The rules

  • Outcomes, not compounds. A compound has no single grade in the strict sense; the overall letter on its card is the best-supported outcome. The matrix is the real answer.
  • Humans only. Rodent, cell and in-silico studies inform the “how it might work” section and nothing else.
  • Adverse effects are graded too. A well-documented side effect earns an A exactly like a well-documented benefit. Both are marked so a reader can weigh the trade.
  • Effect size is separate from grade. Three squares means a large effect; the grade says how sure we are it is real. A large, uncertain effect and a small, certain one look different on purpose.
  • Sponsorship is noted, not excluded. Industry-funded trials count, and are flagged in the source column.

Editorial standards

Every compound page opens with a direct answer of under eighty words, because that is the paragraph most people will read and the one answer engines will quote. Everything below it exists to justify that paragraph.

We describe what a compound is, what the evidence says, and what its legal status is. We do not publish doses, protocols, instructions for preparation or administration, or any information about where to obtain a compound. That line is not editorial preference; it is the line between publishing and practising medicine, and this site stays on the publishing side of it.

Independence

LYO sells nothing, lists no vendors, and accepts no sponsorship, advertising or paid placement. There is no mechanism by which money can reach a grade.

Corrections and changes

Each compound page carries a dated change log. When a new study changes a grade, the entry says which study and which direction. If we get something wrong, the correction is logged in the same place, not silently edited.