Zinc and the Common Cold: Does It Really Shorten It?

Vitamin C and the Common Cold: Does the Pauling Myth Hold Up?

Two-time Nobel laureate Linus Pauling argued in the 1970s that megadoses of vitamin C could prevent the common cold — a belief that still drives supplement sales worldwide today. The largest Cochrane review, covering over 11,000 participants, tells a far more nuanced story: for the average person, regular vitamin C supplementation barely moves the needle on catching a cold. But there's a clear exception — and the data behind it is some of the strongest in the entire review.

August 23, 2026

Vitamin D and Colds: What Do the Large Meta-Analyses Show?

"Vitamin D boosts immunity and protects against colds" is one of the most repeated claims in supplement conversations — and in this case, the popular claim is both true and misleading at the same time. Two large meta-analyses of randomized trials, including one built on individual participant data from 25 trials, show a real but modest protective effect against respiratory infections — provided vitamin D is taken daily or weekly in a moderate dose. The "one large dose per month or quarter" model popular in supplement marketing does not, in practice, deliver that effect. This article explains why how you dose matters more than the simple decision to supplement or not.

August 25, 2026

Cold Showers and Immunity: Do You Really Get Sick Less?

"Cold exposure boosts your immune system" is one of the most repeated claims in biohacking — but the newest, largest meta-analysis on the topic shows something more complex: inflammation rises short-term, and immune markers don't budge. There is, though, one real, if surprising, long-term effect. We break down the evidence.

August 22, 2026

Creatine and Hair Loss: Does the Supplement Really Raise DHT?

"Creatine causes baldness" is one of the most repeated warnings in gym culture — and it rests on exactly one study from 2009, which never measured hair loss at all. That study did show a real spike in DHT, the hormone responsible for pattern hair loss, up 56% after a week of creatine loading. The catch: nobody since has ever tested whether that DHT spike actually translates into real hair loss — and those are very different questions.

August 23, 2026

Zinc

A trace element essential for the work of over 300 enzymes in the body — its deficiency, more common than widely believed, affects immunity, wound healing, and hormone balance.

Vitamin D3

Functionally it acts like a steroid hormone — deficiencies are widespread in Poland, especially during autumn and winter.

Gut Microbiome

Trillions of bacteria, viruses, and fungi colonizing the gut aren't a passive "passenger" in the body — they're an active ecosystem influencing digestion, immunity, and even mood, with an increasingly well-documented, though still not fully mapped, role in whole-body health.

Turkey Tail

The mushroom behind PSK and PSP — the only fungal polysaccharides registered in Japan as drugs supporting chemotherapy. Among the most solid clinical evidence of any functional mushroom, but this is NOT a standalone cancer therapy.

Beta-glucans

Polysaccharides responsible for most of the documented immunomodulatory properties of medicinal mushrooms, oats, and barley — the common denominator behind dozens of species described in this knowledge base.

Shiitake

A culinary-functional mushroom rich in lentinan and beta-glucans, studied clinically for immune modulation and lipid profile — one of the best-researched functional mushrooms on the market.