The Research Behind Every Formula

The Gold Standard for Study Design

A study's results are only as reliable as its design. When we reference research, we look for trials that meet the highest criteria used by leading scientific journals:

• Human clinical trials. Studies conducted with real people, not lab models.
• Randomized and placebo-controlled. Random assignment; outcomes compared against placebo.
• Double-blind. Neither participants nor researchers know who receives the active ingredient.
• Peer-reviewed publication. Findings subjected to independent expert review.

The Research

Lutein + Zeaxanthin -- Visual Comfort During Prolonged Screen Use

Lopresti and Smith recruited 70 adults using screens 6+ hours daily and randomized them to 10mg lutein + 2mg zeaxanthin or placebo for six months. The ingredient doses match exactly what is in every serving of Amp Up Pure Vision Gummies.

• Significantly improve tear film stability vs. placebo, measured by Schirmer tear test and tear film break-up time.¹
• Accelerate photo-stress recovery time, indicating reduced glare sensitivity and improved resilience of retinal photoreceptors.¹
• Zero adverse effects reported across all 70 participants over the full 180-day period.¹

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Lutein + Zeaxanthin -- Macular Pigment Density and Eye Strain

Parekh et al. conducted a placebo-controlled gummy trial in 60 participants over 180 days, measuring macular pigment optical density (MPOD) -- a validated biomarker for how effectively the macula filters blue light.

• Increase MPOD by 25% vs. a +3% non-significant change in the placebo group.²
• Significantly reduce eye strain and fatigue, measured by validated questionnaires covering visual discomfort and difficulty focusing.²
• Improve visual processing speed, suggesting macular carotenoids support both comfort and visual performance.²

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Bilberry Extract -- Ciliary Muscle Recovery After Screen Work

Kosehira et al. recruited 109 adults with ocular fatigue and randomized them to 240mg bilberry extract or placebo for 12 weeks. Ciliary muscle function was measured before and after standardized VDT tasks.

• Significantly improve ciliary muscle accommodation after VDT tasks at weeks 8 and 12.³
• Produce a progressive, cumulative effect, becoming statistically significant by week 8 and strengthening by week 12.³

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Bilberry Extract -- Screen Eye Fatigue in Office Workers

Ozawa et al. ran one of the largest RCTs on screen-related ocular fatigue: 281 office workers ages 20-40 randomized to bilberry extract or placebo for 8 weeks.

• Improve critical flicker fusion (CFF), a validated measure of retinal fatigue and visual processing speed, significantly vs. placebo.⁴
• Improve near-point accommodation and preserve the eye's focusing ability during prolonged screen work.⁴
• Improve tear film quality and reduce subjective symptoms including dryness, heaviness, and blurred vision.⁴

The Research

Melatonin -- Sleep Onset Latency and Sleep Quality

Ferracioli-Oda et al. analyzed 19 placebo-controlled trials totaling 1,683 participants. Meta-analyses represent the highest level of clinical evidence available.

• Significantly reduce sleep onset latency vs. placebo across all 19 included trials.¹
• Significantly increase total sleep time on average compared to placebo nights.¹
• Significantly improve overall sleep quality with no evidence of tolerance or dependence across included studies.¹

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Magnesium -- Sleep Quality in Adults

Abbasi et al. randomized 46 adults to 500mg magnesium or placebo for 8 weeks, measuring sleep quality via the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), serum melatonin, and cortisol.

• Significantly improve PSQI total score, a validated composite measure covering sleep latency, duration, and daytime dysfunction.²
• Increase serum melatonin concentration, suggesting magnesium supports endogenous sleep hormone production.²
• Reduce serum cortisol levels, a stress hormone that interferes with sleep onset.²

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L-Theanine -- Stress Reduction and Sleep Preparation

Hidese et al. randomized 30 healthy adults to 200mg L-theanine or placebo for 4 weeks, measuring sleep quality and stress-related symptoms.

• Significantly improve sleep satisfaction and reduce sleep latency versus placebo.³
• Reduce stress and anxiety scores, supporting L-theanine's role as a relaxation-promoting compound without sedation.³
• Improve next-day alertness, suggesting sleep quality improvements translated into measurable daytime cognitive benefits.³

The Research

African Mango Extract -- Body Weight and Metabolic Markers

Ngondi et al. randomized 102 overweight volunteers to 150mg Irvingia gabonensis seed extract twice daily or placebo for 10 weeks. No exercise protocol was mandated. This is the landmark RCT for African mango extract.

• Reduce body weight significantly vs. placebo, with meaningful total body weight reductions over the 10-week period.¹
• Reduce waist circumference, a clinically relevant measure of visceral adiposity and metabolic risk.¹
• Improve fasting blood glucose and LDL cholesterol, consistent with adiponectin and leptin regulation mechanisms.¹

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L-Carnitine -- Body Weight and BMI

Pooyandjoo et al. conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 9 RCTs examining L-carnitine supplementation on body weight and composition across 911 participants.

• Significantly reduce body weight vs. placebo/control, consistent across diverse populations.²
• Reduce BMI significantly, supporting L-carnitine's role in fatty acid transport into mitochondria for energy.²

The Research

Vitamin D3 -- Respiratory Infection Prevention

Martineau et al. conducted a landmark meta-analysis of 25 RCTs involving 11,321 participants, examining vitamin D3 supplementation and the risk of acute respiratory tract infections.

• Significantly reduce risk of acute respiratory infection vs. placebo across all 25 included trials.¹
• Provide greatest benefit to deficient individuals -- those with low baseline vitamin D showed the strongest protective effect.¹
• Safe and well-tolerated across all 25 trials with no serious adverse effects.¹

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Elderberry Extract -- Cold and Flu Duration and Severity

Zakay-Rones et al. randomized 60 adults with influenza to elderberry syrup or placebo 4x daily for 5 days, tracking illness progression, symptom severity, and recovery time.

• Reduce flu duration by an average of 4 days -- full recovery in 2-6 days vs. 6-10 days in the control group.²
• Significantly reduce symptom severity including fever, muscle aches, headache, and nasal congestion.²
• Reduce use of rescue medication -- fewer elderberry participants required pain relievers or decongestants.²

The Research

Caffeine + L-Theanine -- Focus, Attention, and Alertness

Haskell et al. tested caffeine alone, L-theanine alone, the combination, and placebo in 27 young adults in a fully counterbalanced crossover design. This is considered the foundational paper on the caffeine-theanine combination.

• Significantly improve speed of attention switching vs. placebo and vs. either ingredient alone -- demonstrating a synergistic interaction.¹
• Improve alertness and reduce mental fatigue more effectively than caffeine alone, with L-theanine providing smoother, more sustained focus.¹
• Reduce headache incidence compared to caffeine alone, consistent with L-theanine attenuating some of caffeine's side effects.¹

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Taurine -- Exercise Performance and Energy Metabolism

Waldron et al. reviewed 10 clinical trials examining taurine supplementation on endurance performance, muscle function, and cognitive outcomes.

• Improve time-to-exhaustion and endurance performance across multiple exercise modalities, consistent with taurine's role in mitochondrial function.²
• Reduce exercise-induced oxidative stress markers, suggesting taurine's antioxidant properties protect muscle and nerve cells.²

The Research

Astaxanthin -- Skin Elasticity, Wrinkles, and Moisture

Tominaga et al. randomized 65 healthy women to astaxanthin or placebo for 16 weeks. Skin parameters were measured objectively using cutometry (elasticity), profilometry (wrinkle depth), and corneometry (moisture).

• Significantly improve skin elasticity measured by cutometry -- an objective biomechanical measure of skin rebound.¹
• Reduce wrinkle depth around the eye area, as measured by 3D skin profilometry.¹
• Improve skin moisture content, consistent with astaxanthin protecting the skin barrier from oxidative degradation.¹

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Grape Seed Extract -- UV-Induced Pigmentation

Ni et al. randomized 30 patients with UV-induced hyperpigmentation (chloasma) to 100mg grape seed extract 3x daily or placebo for 6 months.

• Significantly reduce hyperpigmentation -- melanin index scores improved significantly vs. placebo.²
• Improve overall skin tone uniformity, supporting GSE's role in inhibiting tyrosinase activity and melanin overproduction.²

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Coenzyme Q10 -- Skin Anti-Aging

Zmitek et al. randomized 33 healthy women to 50mg oral CoQ10 or placebo for 12 weeks, measuring skin microrelief, wrinkle score, and antioxidant capacity via quantitative skin imaging.

• Significantly reduce wrinkle score vs. placebo, consistent with CoQ10's role in dermal fibroblast mitochondrial function.³
• Improve skin microrelief and texture, with surface irregularities decreasing significantly in the CoQ10 group.³