How this site works
Methodology
This page is the standard every other page is held to. If we ever fail it, we would rather you noticed here than found out the hard way.
Why these subjects sit together
Metabolism is how the body turns inputs into energy. Water, food and environmental exposures are all inputs, which is why they belong on one site rather than three. That is an organising idea, not a health claim — we are not suggesting that attending to one input resolves anything else, and we do not make claims about metabolic function or any condition.
Products come last in that hierarchy, and deliberately so. They are possible tools. Quite often the right tool is none.
What we actually do
We work from documents. Manufacturer manuals and specification sheets, published certificates of analysis and contaminant tests, standards published by bodies like NSF and regulatory material from agencies like the EPA and FDA. Where a manufacturer publishes a test result as a PDF buried behind an image, we open it, read it, and put the relevant numbers into a table you can actually scan.
We do not currently perform our own laboratory testing or physical installation. Where we have not tested something ourselves, we say so on the page rather than implying experience we do not have. Document analysis is a legitimate method, and it is the method we use.
Our evidence tiers
Every meaningful claim on a product or guide page is assigned a tier and traced to a source. The evidence table at the bottom of each page shows you the whole set.
| Tier | Meaning | How we use it |
|---|---|---|
| A | Manufacturer factual statement | Reported, always attributed to them |
| B | Composition or specification | Used directly, verified against documentation |
| C | Manufacturer claim about what a product does | Reported as their claim, never adopted as ours |
| D | Published laboratory result | Our strongest tier, cited to the specific document |
| E | External research or a standards body | Used with the study population stated |
| F | Our editorial view | Always marked as opinion, never as finding |
Rules we hold ourselves to
Attribution does not launder a claim. Quoting someone else making a claim we could not make ourselves is the same as making it. If a manufacturer or a founder says something we cannot support, we do not repeat it, embed it, or screenshot it.
Research has to match the population. A study conducted in people with a diagnosed condition does not support a recommendation to a general reader. Where we cite research, the population it was conducted in is stated.
We do not make disease claims. Nothing here treats, cures, prevents or reverses any named condition, and we do not use language that implies otherwise. Supplements are not medicine and we do not write about them as though they were.
Certification language has to be precise. "Certified" means nothing without a standard number and a contaminant list. A product certified to NSF/ANSI 42 is certified for aesthetic effects such as chlorine and taste, not for health effects, and not for everything. Where a product carries no third-party certification at all, we say so plainly rather than leaving the impression that it does.
We publish what we do not know. Every substantial page carries a section listing what we could not determine. That section is not an admission of weakness — it is the part of the page most likely to save you money.
What we will not do
- Recommend something we would not use ourselves or suggest to someone we know.
- Hide a product's constraints, lead times, or true running cost to make a sale easier.
- Publish a review of a product whose supporting documents we have not read.
- Present manufacturer marketing copy as an independent finding.
- Accept payment for a favourable review, or let commission rates decide our rankings.
How we are paid
We earn a commission if you buy through links on this page, at no extra cost to you. It does not change what we recommend, and we say so when we think you should not buy.
We think the honest test of an affiliate site is whether it will tell you not to buy. When the cheaper product is the right one, we say so. When the answer is that you do not need any product, we say that too. Our full disclosure is on the disclosure page.
Corrections
Prices change, products sell out, and manufacturers revise their documentation. Every page carries the date it was last verified and the date its next review is due. If you find something wrong, tell us and we will fix it and note the correction.