Evidence Rules

Research and Citation Policy

Citations should help a reader verify a specific statement, not create the appearance of authority through a long reference list.

Owned and reviewed by Jake Crossman, NASM-CNC Updated July 20, 2026

Our evidence hierarchy

We use the strongest relevant source available for the claim being made.

  • Government health agencies, regulations, and professional clinical guidelines
  • Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of relevant human evidence
  • Randomized controlled human trials
  • Observational human research when stronger evidence is unavailable
  • Mechanistic, animal, or laboratory evidence only with explicit limitations

How citations are used

A source must support the nearby claim in population, intervention, outcome, and degree of certainty. Evidence about magnesium generally is not presented as proof about magnesium glycinate specifically.

What we avoid

  • Treating a small or preliminary study as settled science
  • Using a source that discusses a different magnesium form as direct proof
  • Presenting association as causation
  • Hiding null findings, adverse effects, or important study limitations
  • Citing another retailer as the authority for a medical or scientific claim

Sources and Evidence sections

Every retained health article includes a Sources and Evidence section. Each entry identifies why the source is relevant, while the article itself states the limitations that affect its conclusion.