What the research says about our ingredients (and where it stops)
naturaveda formulas are built from plants that people have used for a long time and that researchers have studied to very different degrees. This page lists what we found for every ingredient in our four formulas, including the places where the evidence is thin or points the other way.
How to read this page
Research on isolated plant extracts often works with higher single doses than a formula made for daily use. We link that research as context, not as a promise about our products.
Every ingredient carries one of two labels. Clinically studied means there is human research on the ingredient itself. Traditional use means the plant has a long record of use behind it, but no clinical research we consider solid enough to cite. Where a plant has not been studied in a way that holds up, we say so instead of leaving the ingredient off the page.
Each study below is research on an ingredient. None of it is a statement about a naturaveda product, and none of it should be read as a claim that our amounts match the amounts used in those trials. We also name our own amount for every ingredient, so you can weigh that yourself.
hepavital brings together six plant ingredients and one amino acid, taken as two capsules a day. Turmeric, milk thistle and artichoke leaf are the most extensively researched of them. Dandelion root is in the formula on the strength of traditional use, and you will find that stated as such below.
Curcumin, the active compound in turmeric, has been studied for its role in supporting healthy liver enzyme levels already within the normal range. Reviews also point to a role in supporting normal fat and glucose metabolism as part of a healthy lifestyle.
One thing to know about that research: it is done with standardized curcumin extracts. Our label declares turmeric root powder, which carries only a small share of curcuminoids. The research describes the plant compound, not our amount.
Research on this ingredient
Glycine is one of the three amino acids the body uses to build glutathione, its own antioxidant molecule, and it plays a role in normal amino acid metabolism.
Where the research stands: the largest controlled trial we found did not meet its primary endpoint, and in that research glycine was always given together with N-acetylcysteine, which hepavital does not contain. We list the studies for that reason, not as proof.
Research on this ingredient
Dandelion root has a long history of traditional use in supporting normal digestive and liver function. In European herbal practice it is associated with normal bile flow and digestive comfort.
We label it traditional use for a simple reason. The research we found is preclinical, and the 2025 review states directly that clinical studies are missing and that an optimal dose still has to be determined. Both papers are linked so you can see that for yourself.
Silymarin from milk thistle seed is one of the most researched botanicals for liver support, studied for its role in helping maintain liver enzyme levels within the normal range.
That research works with standardized silymarin amounts. Our label declares a seed extract without a declared silymarin percentage, so we make no claim that our amount matches the amounts used in those trials.
Artichoke leaf extract has been studied for its role in supporting healthy liver function and normal bile production. In a network meta-analysis comparing seven natural compounds, it ranked first for helping maintain liver enzymes within the normal range.
That research uses considerably higher single amounts than a formula built for daily use. We print our amount on the label and leave the comparison to you.
Research on this ingredient
Ginger has been studied for its role in supporting normal digestive function and healthy metabolic balance, and it is traditionally used to help support comfortable digestion after meals.
The evidence base here is small. The available meta-analysis covers four trials with 177 patients in total, and several of the markers it looked at did not change.
Research on this ingredient
Black pepper extract is included to help support the body's absorption of curcumin from turmeric. Piperine, its main compound, is widely used in supplement formulas for exactly that purpose.
Worth knowing: the dose-response meta-analysis on curcumin found no significant effect in the subgroup that combined curcumin with piperine. The combination is not automatically the stronger option.
lungenfreund is a layered formula: one lead botanical, a blend of eight herbs, a blend of four antioxidant compounds, plus vitamin C and zinc. The two blends appear on the label as totals, so we show the total instead of inventing a number for each part.
Mullein is our highest dosed single ingredient and it has no clinical trials behind it. We say that on its card rather than leaving the ingredient off this page.
Mullein leaf has a long history of traditional use for supporting comfortable, clear breathing, and it contains naturally occurring polyphenols that have been studied for their antioxidant properties.
Here is the part we will not gloss over. Mullein is our highest dosed single ingredient, and we found no clinical trial in humans on mullein and the airways. What exists is ethnobotanical review work and laboratory research, and one of those papers looked at the flowers of a different Verbascum species rather than the leaf. That is why this ingredient carries a traditional use label.
Marshmallow root has been used traditionally for its naturally soothing mucilage, which is why it opens the herb blend.
We looked for clinical research in humans on marshmallow root and the airways and found none we consider solid enough to cite. Borrowing a study that answers a different question would be easy and dishonest, so we list marshmallow root as traditional use and leave it there.
We list no study for this ingredient. The research we found does not describe this raw material as we use it, and citing it here would suggest more than we can stand behind.
Olive leaf is a long standing part of Mediterranean herbal practice and is in the blend for its plant polyphenols.
There is modern clinical research on olive leaf extract, but it looks at entirely different questions, such as blood pressure. Presenting it on a page about breathing would be misleading, so we do not.
We list no study for this ingredient. The research we found does not describe this raw material as we use it, and citing it here would suggest more than we can stand behind.
Oregano leaf is a familiar culinary and traditional herb and is part of the herb blend.
The one clinical trial in humans we found for oregano concerns a different area of the body entirely, so it says nothing about the airways. Oregano is listed here as traditional use.
We list no study for this ingredient. The research we found does not describe this raw material as we use it, and citing it here would suggest more than we can stand behind.
Echinacea is one of the most widely used botanicals for supporting normal immune system function, and it has been studied for its role in helping support the body's natural defenses during the winter season.
The more recent of the two reviews below questions how meaningful the effect it measured really is, and found no effect on how long an episode lasted. Echinacea preparations in that research are dosed well above the share any single herb can hold inside a 255 mg blend.
Thyme is a traditional botanical used to help support clear airways and comfortable breathing.
The trial below is a solid one with 361 patients, but it tested a liquid fluid extract syrup combined with ivy leaf, which lungenfreund does not contain. It tells you something about thyme as a plant, not about our capsule.
Peppermint contains menthol, a naturally occurring compound associated with a cooling, refreshing sensation in the throat.
We keep this one deliberately narrow. The research on menthol and breathing works with inhalation or with direct contact in the mouth and throat. lungenfreund is a swallowed capsule, so those results do not carry over, and we will not present them as if they did.
Holy basil, also known as tulsi, is an adaptogenic herb traditionally used to help support normal immune function.
The available trial is small, with 22 participants analyzed, and it measured markers in the blood rather than how anyone felt. It used a concentrated leaf extract at a level that a single herb inside a blend does not reach.
Plantain leaf is traditionally used to help soothe the throat and support comfortable breathing.
Two honest notes on the trial below. It used a syrup rather than a capsule, and it studied Plantago major, while plantain leaf on supplement labels usually refers to the related species Plantago lanceolata. We therefore read it as research on the plant group, not on our exact raw material.
Research on this ingredient
N-acetylcysteine is a precursor the body uses to produce glutathione, supporting its normal antioxidant defenses in the respiratory tract. It has also been studied for its role in supporting normal mucus consistency and healthy respiratory comfort, and it carries the largest body of research in this formula.
That research works with amounts far above the share N-acetylcysteine can hold inside a 130 mg blend, and the Cochrane authors note that newer trials show smaller effects than older ones. We list it because it is real research on the compound, not because our amount matches it.
Research on this ingredient
Curcumin from turmeric has been studied for its role in supporting a healthy inflammatory response in the airways. Polyphenols of this kind are also researched for their role in supporting normal lung function and healthy antioxidant balance.
The trial below used nano-curcumin, a formulation built for absorption. Our blend contains turmeric, which carries only a small share of curcuminoids, so the research describes the compound rather than our amount.
Quercetin is a plant flavonoid included for its antioxidant properties.
We are not going to dress this one up. The large community trial below found no significant effect across all participants, and a 2025 review of polyphenols reached the same conclusion for quercetin. It stays in the formula as an antioxidant flavonoid, and it stays on this page with the result it actually produced.
Bromelain is a naturally occurring enzyme complex from pineapple, included to help support the body's normal inflammatory balance and normal enzymatic function.
The systematic review below calls the overall effect on inflammatory markers inconsistent, and none of the trials it included looked at the airways. Tolerability was good across the studies.
Vitamin C contributes to the normal function of the immune system and helps protect cells from oxidative stress. At 50 percent of the Daily Value, that nutrient function is what our amount supports.
The common cold research below is built on gram level amounts, far above what a daily formula like ours provides. So we make the nutrient statement and not the cold statement.
Zinc is an essential mineral that contributes to the normal function of the immune system and plays a role in normal immune cell function.
The research most often quoted for zinc and colds comes from lozenges, where the effect depends on zinc being released in the mouth and throat. lungenfreund is a swallowed capsule, so we stay with the nutrient statement.
prostaveda is a short formula with three ingredients, taken as two capsules a day. Saw palmetto is the most studied of the three, and the most recent Cochrane review of it came out negative. We show that review instead of skipping past it.
Saw palmetto is a traditional botanical long used by men to support healthy prostate function and normal urinary flow.
It is also the ingredient in our range with the largest body of evidence and the least flattering result. The 2023 Cochrane review, covering 4,656 participants, concluded that saw palmetto on its own makes little to no difference compared with placebo. A separate meta-analysis reported better outcomes, but only for one specific branded hexane extract, which is not the same material as ours. All three papers are below, including the ones that do not help our case.
Research on this ingredient
Nettle is a traditional botanical with a long place in European herbal practice.
The clinical research on nettle and urinary function was done with the root, prepared as an extract. Our label declares the leaf, as a powder. Those are two different raw materials with different plant chemistry, so we do not attach the root research to our leaf powder. Nettle is listed here as traditional use.
We list no study for this ingredient. The research we found does not describe this raw material as we use it, and citing it here would suggest more than we can stand behind.
Pumpkin seed has a long history of use in supporting normal bladder and urinary function in men, and it is used to help men maintain healthy prostate function over the long term.
The evidence is thin rather than absent: one single-blind trial with 73 participants and one observational study over 24 months without a control group. The trial also used pumpkin seed oil, which is a different raw material from our extract.
vagibiotik combines prebiotic fibers, cranberry, D-mannose, hibiscus and a probiotic culture blend of twelve species at 10 billion CFU, taken as two capsules a day.
Probiotic research is strain specific. Our label declares species, not strains, so we do not attach any single trial to our cultures. The reasoning is on the probiotic card.
Prebiotic fibers such as inulin help nourish beneficial bacteria in the digestive tract. That is the statement our ingredient supports, and we keep it there.
The one randomized trial we found on fructo-oligosaccharides and vaginal flora found no difference, and it was run in a population that is not our audience. We list it because leaving out an inconvenient result would defeat the purpose of this page.
Cranberry is widely used by women to support urinary tract health, and it carries the broadest evidence base in this formula. The 2023 Cochrane review covers 50 studies with 8,857 randomized participants.
One thing to understand about that research: it is built around proanthocyanidins, the cranberry compounds, and the amount of those compounds decides what a study finds. We state our extract amount as it appears on the label and make no claim that it matches the amounts used in those trials.
D-mannose is a naturally occurring sugar used to support normal urinary tract function as part of a daily routine.
The Cochrane review below is blunt about the state of the evidence. There is currently little to no reliable research either supporting or ruling out D-mannose, and the included studies carried a high risk of bias. A separate meta-analysis was more positive but rested on very few studies. You get both.
Hibiscus is a traditional botanical used to support urinary comfort.
The clinical research in this area tested hibiscus only as one part of a three component product, together with xyloglucan and propolis, and the result cannot be assigned to hibiscus on its own. Since we use hibiscus by itself, we list it as traditional use instead of borrowing that result.
We list no study for this ingredient. The research we found does not describe this raw material as we use it, and citing it here would suggest more than we can stand behind.
Our culture blend contains twelve species: L. casei, L. acidophilus, L. plantarum, B. lactis, L. rhamnosus, L. paracasei, L. gasseri, L. salivarius, B. bifidum, B. longum, B. breve and L. reuteri. Lactobacillus cultures are used to help support a healthy, balanced vaginal microflora.
Now the honest limit. Clinical research on probiotics is strain specific, not species specific. Two cultures can share a species name and behave differently, which is why every trial names its strain. Our label declares species, not strains, so we do not attach any individual trial to our cultures and we make no claim about what they do.
The two reviews below describe the research field as a whole. They are listed for context only, and none of their findings is a statement about our blend.
Research on this ingredient
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.