AG1, the greens powder, became one of the most recognizable sponsors in wellness podcasting, with reads on shows hosted by Andrew Huberman, Joe Rogan, Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway. Critics argued that the sponsorships explained its growth better than the formula did. In May 2025 it launched a new formula that it says it held back for a year so it could be anchored in four human clinical trials.1 A brand built on other people's credibility decided it needed evidence of its own.
How many people take supplements?
Most American adults do. The CDC's national survey found that 58% of US adults had used a dietary supplement in the previous 30 days in 2017 to 2018, up from 48% a decade earlier on an age-adjusted basis.2 The industry's own 2023 survey with Ipsos put the figure at 74%, with 55% describing themselves as regular users and 92% of users agreeing that supplements are essential to their health.3 The two numbers measure different things, and the second comes from a trade association, but both describe a mainstream habit with a lot of questions attached.
How often do the claims break the rules?
A supplement can say it "supports restful sleep" without FDA approval, provided it has evidence the claim is true, carries a disclaimer and notifies the FDA within 30 days. It can't say it treats insomnia.4 In 2012 the HHS Office of Inspector General bought 127 supplements marketed for weight loss or immune support and checked their labels. One in five carried prohibited disease claims, 7% lacked the required disclaimer, and the substantiation companies sent in was often inconsistent with FDA guidance.5 In 2023 the FTC sent notices to about 670 marketers of supplements, functional foods and OTC products, reminding them that health claims need competent and reliable scientific evidence.6
What federal reviewers found on 127 supplement labels
HHS Office of Inspector General, 2012
Most of those claims are written by marketers. Spoken claims are harder to control. A creator improvising on a podcast, or a guest expert asked an unexpected question, can make a disease claim in a sentence, and that sentence is now recorded, clipped and shared.
Who do people listen to?
Doctors are already part of this market. In a 2008 survey of 900 US physicians published in Nutrition Journal, 72% of cardiologists, 66% of dermatologists and 91% of orthopedists said they recommended supplements to their patients, and most took supplements themselves.7 The survey was sponsored by the industry, but it matches what anyone who works in practitioner channels sees: a recommendation from a clinician or a dietitian carries weight a creator can't match.
Influencers still reach more people. Pew Research found in 2026 that 40% of US adults get health and wellness information from influencers or podcasts, but only 10% of them trust all or most of what they hear.8 Reach comes from the creators and belief comes from the practitioners, and most brands spend far more on the first.
What makes a claim defensible?
From a podcast read to a claim you can defend
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A defensible claim rests on evidence and on honesty about its limits. ZOE published a randomized trial of its personalized nutrition program in Nature Medicine in 2024: over 18 weeks, 347 adults on the program lowered triglycerides and weight more than those given standard dietary advice, with no significant difference in LDL cholesterol. The authors noted that the program group had more contact than the control group, and the trial was funded by ZOE.9 AG1's claims about its own trials are the company's, about studies it funded, and critics will read them closely.1 Both are far easier to defend than a testimonial.
Between the creator's story and the published trial sits the rung most brands skip: an expert who explains what the evidence does and doesn't show. A registered dietitian who walks practitioners through a trial, takes skeptical questions and is open about the limits builds trust that no podcast read can. The questions that come back also tell the brand what to study next.
- Run a monthly practitioner masterclass, led by a named dietitian or scientist, on the evidence behind one ingredient at a time.
- Agree the claims before the session, so the expert can be candid about limits without straying into treatment claims.
- Answer "can I take this with my medication?" the same way every time: speak to your doctor or pharmacist.
- Search what people asked across every session to decide which question your next study should answer.
Adelo Insights · Health tech and the expert voice
